What to do with dictators' money

A Swiss delegation last week met with representatives of Egyptian authorities to discuss how the money invested by the Mubarak clan in Switzerland can be returned to Egypt. The liberal-conservative daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung urges caution in managing the money of dictators: "If the figures are to be believed, around a quarter of the movable private assets outside the country are being managed in Switzerland. Switzerland was relatively quick this year to block access to money suspected to belong to the potentates of rebelling North African states, and the amounts that have been located (in total 830 million francs [661 million euros] from Egypt, Libya and Tunisia) seem relatively modest in view of the speculation about far higher sums accumulated by the clans in question. ... Legally it seems there is no urgent call for action, although calls for tougher measures can be heard. ... At any rate the Swiss banks should certainly keep their antenna on the alert."

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