Paul Genoud

Paul Genoud

Paul Genoud (born October 10, 1916 in Remaufens ; † January 8, 1992 in Bulle) was a Swiss politician ( FDP ) and State Councilor of the canton of Friborg .

Live and act

Genoud, a Catholic by birth , comes from Châtel-Saint-Denis . His parents were Casimir Jules, farmer, and Marie Elisa geb. Vauthey. In 1942 he married Thérèse Cavuscens.

After primary school in Remaufens and Casseneuil (Lot-et-Garonne), Paul Genoud attended secondary school in Châtel-Saint-Denis from 1928 and the Hauterive teacher training college from 1932, where he obtained his teaching diploma in 1936. Until 1940 he completed internships in Geneva, France and in the canton of Friborg and worked for the feature pages of several newspapers. In the 1950s he published articles signed with PEG (Paul Edouard Genoud) in L'Indépendant , the newspaper of the Freiburger Freinnigen. From 1940 on as a teacher in Zénauva ( Saane district ), the liberal was elected to the Grand Council in 1961, where he sat until 1966. He had to give up the lesson because this according to theState Council was incompatible with a political mandate. Nevertheless, despite their teaching profession, two conservatives were represented in the cantonal parliament. Genoud courageously decided to take up political office. Since he saw himself as a victim of injustice, he embodied the martyr of liberalism against the authoritarian regime of the conservatives. From 1962 to 1966 he headed the Feuille d'Avis de Bulle et Châtel-Saint-Denis . Since 1959 Vice President of the Freiburg Athletics Association for Amateurs, he strongly advocated popular sport.

From 1963 to 1966 he sat on the National Council . In a replacement election for the Council of State in March 1966, supported by the Social Democrats, whose candidate Jean Riesen was eliminated in the first ballot, he was elected by a small margin of 259 votes on more than 31,000 ballots. His victory over the conservative Jacques Morard (1921–2010) met with a national response and marked the beginning of the collapse of the hitherto dominant conservatives. "His politically courageous personality facilitated rapprochement," commented La Sentinelle . Genoud's election heralded an important political turning point as the Conservatives lost their majority in the Grand Council a few months later.

In the State Council, Genoud headed the health and police department during the construction of the new canton hospital. The project, which was estimated at 25 million, ended up costing four times more, and Genoud was forced to apply for several additional credits in the Grand Council, which earned him fierce criticism. When he left the hospital already cost 85 million. He initiated a new law on public restaurants, dancing and the beverage trade. In 1969 he was President of the State Council.

In 1971 the Social Democrats won two seats in the Council of State with Denis Clerc and Jean Riesen at the expense of the liberal Emil Zehnder and Paul Genoud. The loser turned to various business activities and assisted his son-in-law with the publication of photo books.

literature

• Georges Andrey , Hubertus von Gemmingen (translation): The Freiburg State Council: 1848–2011; History, organization, members . Ed .: John Clerc, Jean-Pierre Dorand, Nicholas Gex. Paulus, Freiburg 2012, ISBN 978-3-7228-0815-4 .

Web link

• Jean-Pierre Dorand / SK: Genoud, Paul. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .