Mathieu Fabian Gauss, an ex-Green who became PBD5 reading minutes

Le Regard Libre N° 55 - Nicolas Locatelli

He is one of the few federal election candidates to have switched parties. How does one move from the ecologist Green Party to the bourgeois-democratic Party? Discussion.

Le Regard LibreThe PBD is a «small party». Why did you join it?

Mathieu Fabian Gauss: Because I'm convinced it suits me. I've analyzed all the parties and the PBD is pretty much in the center, neither completely left nor completely right, it has some very good ideas and it's not very big. Its small size allows its members to do things that the big parties can't afford to do. It seems to me that it's more difficult to create something when you're new to a large party than in the smaller ones, where there are more opportunities to take part in building a project and where you can have more influence. 

Do you think this is due to a lack of interest or a rejection of traditional politics?

I think it's more a question of rejection. Even if our party's slogan is «langweillig aber gut»We need to show our generation that politics isn't something for old people, and that it's certainly not boring. I'm convinced that if we were to introduce citizenship education courses in secondary and vocational schools, we could awaken a taste for politics in young people.

We spent our adolescence with social networks. Do they help us to wake up, or do they encourage demagoguery and rumours?

Both. They enable us to obtain and circulate interesting information more quickly, but they also enable those with the ambition to spread false information to manipulate young people's opinions. These tools benefit everyone, and that's precisely their weakness as well as their strength. How many times have we seen stars declared dead or murdered, when in fact they were not, and yet the intoxicating information was shared en masse without the source being verified? Holocaust deniers, who claim that gas chambers and even the Holocaust did not exist during the Second World War, have also invaded the Internet.

You were with the Young Greens and Operation Libero, and now you've joined the PBD. Aren't you an extreme centerfold? 

I consider myself a center-progressive. Yes, I joined the Greens in 2016. And I'm with Operation Libero because it gives you a really broad perspective rather than just committing to a traditional party. So, yes, I'm from the center, although according to «smartvote» type tests, I lean slightly to the left. I defend my ideas, which aren't necessarily always those of the party, and I think that people should be able to defend their personal opinions without being beaten up. That's something I couldn't do before. Before, if I defended ideas that didn't come from the party, I risked being attacked or stigmatized.

Are you still an environmentalist?

It's still my number-one concern. Even if it's not necessarily a major issue for the young Swiss PBD, I personally defend it with great importance. Unfortunately, many of our compatriots think it's only a left-wing issue, or only a Green issue. What I want to show through my campaign is that people who don't necessarily come from the Greens or the left can bring environmental issues into the debate, or be environmentalists. Which I am. There are still many people who find it hard to understand that ecology affects everyone. Right-wing politicians will easily tend to defend one idea just because it smacks of the right and not another because it has left-wing connotations, and left-wing politicians will tend to behave in exactly the same way, but the other way round. But whether you're on the left or the right, the climate issue is a fact, and it's a question of survival. If we have presidents who deny everything that environmental specialists tell us, and prefer to say that climate change is a fact of life, then we're in trouble. hoax and a Chinese invention, that's not going to help. Fortunately, in Switzerland, even though there are people who openly attack Greta Thunberg, we haven't yet seen the emergence of this kind of Trump-style thinking in government. I hope it never happens. We need to look at these problems and create projects to get us out of them. Of course, if Switzerland goes it alone, the problem will remain; we need to work with our neighbors. Switzerland is well ahead on this issue, but some countries are far behind. That's why we need to show them that ecology is an important issue, and that we need to get them on board. coach in this direction, because it's in their best interest. 

What do you think of the framework agreement with the EU?

It's true that we need to sign an agreement, but under no circumstances should we lie down, submit to the European Union and accept everything it proposes. Everyone has to benefit, and above all Switzerland has to win, because we're not a member of the EU, so we could easily be at a disadvantage. In short: an agreement, yes, but not with just anything in it.

Don't you think that the way the European Union operates, with its opaque, unelected bureaucracy, runs counter to Switzerland's democratic values, as well as ecology, when it encourages free-trade agreements and relocation?

I couldn't agree more. I think the current European Union system is unsustainable. It should be abolished and a new one created to correct certain elements and start something completely new. This will be necessary. I don't think people in Brussels like Switzerland very much, because we've repeatedly refused to join the EU and to sign certain treaties with it. But as you say, their system is very opaque and unclear.

Is there anything in particular you would do immediately if elected to the National Council this month?

In any case, I'm going to try to unblock the pending renewable energy projects, including solar power. Many of them are stuck or have stalled. As an elected official, I'm going to work with my colleagues to focus on these projects. I'm convinced that moving them forward will be an excellent step towards a healthier environment. I'm convinced that this is a feasible project. What's more, I'm not someone who promises great things that I won't deliver.

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Image: © Drawing by Nicolas Locatelli for Le Regard Libre