Yvette Estermann (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Gavlasová; born 26 February 1967) is a Slovakian-born physician and politician who served on the

National Council (Switzerland) The National Council (; ; ; ) is a house of the Federal Assembly (Switzerland), Federal Assembly of Switzerland, representing the people. The other house, Council of States (Switzerland), Council of States, represents the states, preventing mor ...

from 2007 to 2023. During the

2023 Swiss federal election Federal elections were held in Switzerland on 22 October 2023 to elect all members of the National Council (Switzerland), National Council and Council of States (Switzerland), Council of States. The elections were followed by 2023 Swiss Federal ...

she did not run for re-election and is due to leave her post on 3 December 2023.

Early life and education

Estermann was born in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

(now

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

) to Zdeno Gavlas (1932-2008) and Alžbeta Gavlasová (b. 1941). Her father was an insurance agent and freelance spiritual healer while her mother was a homemaker. She studied

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

at the

Comenius University Comenius University Bratislava () is the largest university in Slovakia, with most of its faculties located in Bratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation of Czechoslovakia. It is named after Jan Amos Comenius, a 17th-century ...

, where she obtained her

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in 1993. One year later, she emigrated to Switzerland to marry her Swiss partner and pursue studies in

homeopathic medicine Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths or homeopathic physicians, believe that a substance th ...

. After ceasing to practice medicine due to the time demands of her political office, she now works as a

life coaching Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

consultant. In 2023, Estermann made public that she is currently enrolled in theology studies at the

University of Bern The University of Bern (, , ) is a public university, public research university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern. It was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the canton of Bern. It is a comprehensive university offering a br ...

, and is due to graduate in 2027.

Career

After obtaining Swiss citizenship in 1999, Estermann joined the right-wing

Swiss People's Party The Swiss People's Party (, SVP; , PPS), also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre (, UDC; , UDC), is a national-conservative and right-wing populist political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Marcel Dettling, it is the largest party in ...

(SVP). In 2005, she was elected to the cantonal parliament, the Grand Council of Lucerne, and in the 2007 national elections, she was elected to the National Council. Despite her foreign origin, Estermann is very vocal against immigration of foreigners into Switzerland Estermann was member of the board of Cosmos AG, the business which ran the Swiss degree mill "Free University of Teufen". She also did her doctorate at the university, which raised doubts about her doctorate. She's a member of a Campaign for an Independent and Neutral Switzerland. During the

, Estermann decided not to run for re-election. On 16 June 2016 she was appointed

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the

Swiss Armed Forces The Swiss Armed Forces (; ; ; ; ) are the military and security force of Switzerland, consisting of land and air service branches. Under the country's militia system, regular soldiers constitute a small part of the military and the rest are ...

and will be appointed as minister within the army. She is planning to work as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

for the

reformed church Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyterian, ...

after graduation.

Family

She is married to Richard F. Estermann (b. 1942), an independent consultant
Estermann Consulting
with whom she has one son, Richard Estermann, Jr. (b. 1995). She resides in

Kriens Kriens is a city and a municipality in the district of Lucerne in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. The municipality lies at the foot of the mountain Pilatus, and is a western suburb of Lucerne. History In the oldest documents of the Bened ...

Lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

.Schweizer Illustrierte http://estermann-aktuell.ch/media/blogs/a/si_20130729_060.pdf?mtime=1376854014

References

External links

Personal websitePersonal blogPersonal newssitePersonal video-website
* 1967 births Living people Politicians from Bratislava Slovak emigrants to Switzerland Swiss People's Party politicians Women members of the National Council (Switzerland) Members of the National Council (Switzerland) 2019–2023 Members of the National Council (Switzerland) 2011–2015 Members of the National Council (Switzerland) 2007–2011 Campaign for an Independent and Neutral Switzerland People from the canton of Lucerne Life coaches 21st-century Swiss women politicians 20th-century Slovak physicians Slovak women physicians {{Switzerland-politician-stub