Published1. November 2023, 5:59 p.m
Aarwangen BE: Newcomers want a ban on cowbells – an entire village is fighting back
In the Bernese village of Aarwangen, two couples who had moved here wanted the ringing of cowbells to be banned. There is a big uprising in the village – an initiative has been started.
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Cowbells are always a topic in Switzerland.
20min/Community
Newcomers wanted to have cowbells banned in Aarwangen in the canton of Bern.
20min/Community
The village is defending itself against the newcomers with a cowbell initiative.
20min/Sandro Spaeth
That’s what it’s about
Two couples who moved here wanted to have cowbells banned in Aarwangen in the canton of Bern.
The village population didn’t accept this – and started an initiative for cowbells.
Now the initiative comes before the community assembly.
Arguments over cowbells are a recurring topic in Switzerland in the so-called “cow country”. Even the Federal Court has already dealt with the bell ringing for grazing animals. In Aarwangen in the canton of Bern, the population has mobilized in recent months – not to protest against the ringing of the bells, but rather to support them.
“It’s about much more than just animal bells.”
Andreas Baumann, President of the Initiative Committee
After two newly arrived couples lodged a complaint with the local authorities against the ringing of cowbells, a veritable “pro-cowbell movement” was formed. Within a few weeks, 1,100 people signed the initiative, which corresponds to around a third of the voting population. «It’s about much more than just animal bells. It’s about how we as Swiss want to live, preserve and maintain our culture and traditions in our country,” explained Andreas Baumann, the president of the initiative committee, to SRF.
One of the complainants wants to move away
The two newly arrived couples who had complained about the ringing of bells were less open. One of the parties has since withdrawn its complaint. The other complainant has informed the municipal administration that he plans to move away, as mayor Niklaus Lundsgaard-Hansen confirmed to SRF.
In Aarwangen, various interests are in conflict with each other, as the community has been shaped by the creation of new residential areas in recent years and now has almost 5,000 residents. For mayor Niklaus Lundsgaard-Hansen, this conflict symbolizes the tensions between urban and rural areas.
Voting now takes place
However, Aarwangen is now forced to create official regulations to regulate sound and the need for silence in accordance with noise regulations. This is happening because the bell initiative is up for discussion at the upcoming community meeting in December. The canton hopes to resolve the matter of cowbell complaints by then, as SRF was told upon request.
Aarwangen will then develop a new set of rules that will be presented to the population in 2024. “We do not intend to regulate everything in advance with detailed regulations,” explains Lundsgaard-Hansen, as individual complaints from private individuals will also be possible in the future.
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2023-11-01 17:39:02
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