Mörgeli goes on the offensive in the "Rundschau" dispute

An expert report and other documents are to substantiate Mörgeli's earlier statements. He will send the documents to SRF "soon", said the SVP National Councillor. On Monday, he confirmed a corresponding report by Sonntagsblick at the request of the SDA news agency. Mörgeli's criticism is aimed in particular at an anonymously quoted witness, who in
had made accusations against him in the "Rundschau" newspaper. Mörgeli had already complained in April that he had not submitted a doctoral thesis to him.

The "Rundschau" always denied this. Now Mörgeli presents a twelve-page expert report by the German anthropologist Friedrich Wilhelm Rösing, which is supposed to substantiate his statement. The expert opinion comes to the conclusion that the witness shown on television as a shadowy image and the man named by Mörgeli, who had not completed his doctoral thesis, are "very probably identical", as Mörgeli confirmed on request. The images of the two men were compared for the expert opinion.

Mörgeli also complained that a second witness had not been quoted correctly. This accusation was also rejected by the "Rundschau". Mörgeli now wants to prove his statement with a written confirmation from the doctoral student's lawyer. It states that the witness was misunderstood.

Doubts "downright grotesque"

"Rundschau" editorial director Mario Poletti once again rejected the accusations in a statement published in Sonntagsblick. The renewed doubts expressed about the "key witness" were "downright grotesque". At the end of March, "Rundschau" had accused Mörgeli of having waved through numerous unscientific doctoral theses and thus not properly fulfilling his function as "doctoral supervisor". Mörgeli then lodged a complaint with the SRG ombudsman. The ombudsman rejected two complaints from the SVP National Councillor; he partially approved a third complaint from a follow-up broadcast (Werbewoche.ch reported). (SDA)

Image: Keystone