Senin, 08 Maret 2021

Switzerland bans the burqa and niqab in public places - Metro.co.uk

Protesters in Switzerland after vote to ban the burqa and niqab in public places
Protesters hit the streets in the Swiss capital of Bern after 51% of voters backed a far-right proposal to outlaw the burqa and niqab in public spaces (Picture: AFP)

Switzerland has voted to ban women from wearing the burqa or niqab in public spaces.

The Muslim veils are worn by just a handful of women in the country, but just over 51% of Swiss voters backed a far-right proposal to outlaw them in shops, restaurants and on the street.

Exceptions for full facial veils will be allowed inside religious sites and for security or health reasons, such as face masks to protect against Covid, as well as for traditional carnival celebrations.

There are around 450,000 Muslims in Switzerland, just 5% of the population.

Almost no-one wears a burka and only around 30 women wear the niqab, yet a referendum on the issue was triggered in 2017 after 100,000 people supported a nationwide vote.

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Face veils have been banned since 2013 in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, while neighbouring France and Austria have also prohibited them in public.

The Swiss government had opposed the measure as excessive, arguing that full-face coverings are a ‘marginal phenomenon’.

It was also argued the ban could harm tourism from Persian Gulf states, who are often drawn to Swiss lakeside cities.

Demonstrators hold a sign reading ‘the racist patriarchy went together’ during a protest after the Burqa ban referendum was narrowly approved (Picture: AP)
People hold banners during a protest hours after Swiss voters accepted an initiative, the so-called anti-burqa vote, to ban full facial coverings in public places in Bern on March 7, 2021. - The so-called anti-burqa vote comes after years of debate in Switzerland following similar bans in other European countries -- and in some Muslim-majority states -- despite women in Islamic full-face veils being an exceptionally rare sight in Swiss streets. (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP) (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images)
Almost no-one wears a burka in Switzerland and only around 30 women wear the niqab (Picture: AP)

Supporters of the proposal argued the full-face coverings symbolise the repression of women and that faces should be shown in a free society.

In the end, 51.2% of voters supported the plan. There were majorities against it in six of Switzerland’s 26 cantons – among them those that include the country’s three biggest cities, Zurich, Geneva and Basel, and the capital, Bern.

Backers included the nationalist Swiss People’s Party, which is the strongest in parliament.

The committee that launched the proposal is led by far-right politician Walter Wobmann who also initiated a ban on the construction of new minarets at Swiss mosques.

A coalition of left-leaning parties said the proposal was ‘absurd’ and ‘Islamophobic’, while Mr Wobmann said it addressed both ‘a symbol of a completely different system of values… extremely radical Islam’ and security against ‘hooligans’.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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2021-03-08 09:28:00Z
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