"Phonegate"

"Phonegate"
Readers' Mail, Tribune de Genève, 13 July 2017

While the Swiss are very disappointed in the new European directive on roaming, there has been no attention accorded to the evolution of the "Phonegate" scandal, revealing that nine mobile phones out of ten exceed the legal standards of radiation set by the European Union when used in contact with the body.  These same norms govern Switzerland.

This scandal, which echoes "Dieselgate" in terms of the failure of international monitoring protocols, risks to be even more serious.  While Switzerland does not want to hear about this, some associations for the protection of public health in the United States have brought it to light.

A French physician, Marc Arazi, the person launching the alert on "Phonegate", has just written to the French Ministers for Health and Ecology to ask them to take urgent measures to inform the population of the risks and preventive measures such as carrying and using the cell phone at a distance from the body, recommended in all the manufacturers' user guides.

As for the Federal Councilors Alain Berset and Doris Leuthard, there is total silence because the Confederation is the major share-holder in Swisscom and promotes digital technology without warning consumers of the risks.  Where then are the authorities who are really concerned about the health of citizens?

by Meris Michaels

(translation)