Honored Persons

 

Jean Ziegler

Jean Ziegler (born April 19, 1934 as Hans Ziegler in Thun) is one of the world's most famous globalization critics. The sociologist, politician and author of numerous books was UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food from 2000 to 2008. Ziegler was friends with Jean -Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and also Che Guevara. Famous is the following episode: At his request to take him along on his return trip to Cuba, Che answered: "Your place is here. Here is the brain of the monster, here you have to fight." Ziegler remained in Switzerland and studied sociology. In his books Ziegler repeatedly criticizes the historical role of Switzerland. Ziegler is known for his hard words, which brought him many accusations. So he called starvation death as murder. Because of his harsh words Ziegler was sued by several institutes and private individuals – often successfully. In 2011, his debt is said to have been at 5.5 to 6 million euros, especially due to lost sentences for reputational damage. Ziegler told that the designation of a well-known Swiss business lawyer as a "vulture" alone cost 320,000 Swiss francs. The same lawyer, however, was later legally convicted as a fraudster and therefore legally allowed to be called so. The designation of the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet as "fascist", however, had been favorable with 2,000 francs fine for "libel". In September 2013, Jean Ziegler was re-elected Advisor to the UN Human Rights Council.