DUSHANBE, May 13, 2013, Asia-Plus – Ex-Swiss President, Ms. Ruth Dreifuss, is arriving in Dushanbe today for a three-day working visit.

According to the Swiss Cooperation Office in Tajikistan, Ms. Ruth Dreifuss is scheduled to hold talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon

While in Dushanbe, she will also meet with Tajik human rights activists to discuss issues related to the abolition of the death penalty in Tajikistan.

On May 15, Ms. Ruth Dreifuss will give a press conference on the results of her visit to Tajikistan.

Ms. Ruth Dreifuss (born 9 January 1940 in St. Gallen) is a Swiss politician affiliated with the Social Democratic Party.  She was a member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1993 to 2002, representing the Canton of Geneva).

She was elected to the Swiss Federal Council on March 10, 1993 as the 100th member elected since the foundation of the federal state.  She was the first woman ever to be elected President of the Confederation in 1999.

She won several referendums, including a revision of the Health Insurance Bill, the 10th revision of the social security system, a drug policy based on prevention, therapy, help and rehabilitation, and a new law regarding the film industry and its development.

She is member of the World Knowledge Dialogue Scientific Board and the International Commission against Death Penalty (ICDP).