Category Archives: Switzerland

Boycott Switzerland, says Ken

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“The Swiss vote to ban minarets on mosques isn’t a surprise. There’s always been something unpleasant lurking beneath the respectable veneer of Swiss society. It was only in 1971 that they allowed women to vote, and in some backward areas they weren’t allowed right up until 1990. The Swiss refused to give up the wealth German Jews deposited in Swiss banks before they were exterminated in their millions by Hitler. After the war Swiss banks pulled every trick in the book to hide these bank accounts from relatives who survived the Holocaust.

“People should be free to practise their religion as long as they allow others to do the same. The Swiss vote is what we expect from the BNP, not a modern democracy. The world should boycott their cuckoo clocks and Swiss chocolate and refuse to go skiing on the Swiss Alps until this disgusting result is reversed. The International Olympic Committee’s HQ is in Switzerland. How can they represent the world’s sporting nations after this insult to the quarter of the world’s population who are Muslim? The national Olympic committee should vote to move the HQ to a country where all religions are respected.”

Ken Livingstone in the Sun, 4 December 2009

Swiss youth erect Geneva’s first new minaret

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Cardboard minaretThe Network of Genevan Youth Associations (GLAJ) immediately registered its shock at the result of the Swiss referendum on the banning of minarets by erecting a minaret made of cardboard, wood, paper and tissue in Geneva’s New Square.

The site of the symbolic minaret was deliberate; it was placed at the feet of the statue of General Dufour on a horse. Dufour is a Swiss national hero who presided over the first Geneva Convention which established the International Red Cross.

The young people, all of whom were too young to vote in the referendum, wanted to express their dismay at the ‘vote of shame’ through this symbolic action. As all shops were closed, they had worked through the night collecting whatever materials they could find on the streets of Geneva to build the minaret. GLAJ says more actions will follow and will be posted on Facebook.

Now other young people are joining the protest, bringing with them their own minature minarets upon which they have written messages. Among the messages inscribed on one was an extract from the Tunisian national anthem, written by the celebrated poet Abou El Kacem Chebbi, “When a people want their life, the force of destiny responds. The shadows dissolve and the chains break.”

IRR news report, 3 December 2009

France: chief rabbi urges more tolerance for Muslims in Europe

Posted on by Bob Pitt

GILLES BERNHEIM, GRAND RABBIN DE FRANCE, AU TALK ORANGE-LE FIGAROFrance’s chief rabbi said Europe must change its attitude about Islam.

Rabbi Gilles Bernheim said a Swiss vote Nov. 29 forbidding the construction of minarets alongside mosques was a clear sign that Western European leaders had “failed” at building tolerance toward Muslims, and he called on “all religions” as well as political leaders to increase interfaith dialogue.

“Today we need to act so that Europeans, and not just the Swiss,  change their opinion about Islam,” he wrote in an editorial published Wednesday in the French daily Le Figaro.

He compared the law aimed at minarets to past sanctions against European Jews. “The problem” with the Swiss vote “is the discrimination that it introduces by authorizing the construction of church steeples and tall buildings by all other religions except Islam”. Bernheim noted that in the past, Jews were forbidden to construct synagogues taller than churches.

JTA, 3 December 2009

See also The Local, which reports:

An official from the German Jewish Council warned on Wednesday that Switzerland’s vote to ban mosques with minarets was an expression of Europe’s deep-seated aversion to Islam that was aggravating the integration of Muslims.

While Muslims are regularly accused of an unwillingness to integrate or engage in dialogue, the majority of European society does “very little” to be hospitable or respectful, he said.

“A climate of trust can only happen if Muslims are naturally entitled to the right to their own religion, culture and language, and cultural diversity is considered to be a benefit and enrichment to our country and not a threat or burden,” Kramer said.

Swiss leader calls for Muslim and Jewish cemetery ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A mainstream Swiss political leader is calling for a ban on separate Muslim and Jewish cemeteries. Christophe Darbellay, president of the Christian Democratic People’s Party of Switzerland, made the statement in a television interview Tuesday, two days after Swiss voters passed an initiative to ban minarets.

The anti-minaret initiative came from the opposition ultra-conservative Swiss People’s Party and other right-wing political organizations. Critics say Darbellay is starting a “crusade” to attract voters by proposing similarly xenophobic measures. Mainstream politicians and religious leaders across Europe have reacted with dismay to the anti-minaret vote.

According to the Swiss online daily Tagesanzeiger, Darbellay also wants to ban the wearing of burkas, head-to-toe veils worn by some fundamentalist Muslim women.

Darbellay reportedly said that existing cemeteries would not be affected by a ban, but that there should be no separate cemeteries in the future.

The Swiss People’s Party called for crackdowns on expressions of Muslim fundamentalism in 2006. Observers said the demand for separate cemeteries is an escalation.

JTA, 3 December 2009

Lega Nord calls for Italian referendum on minaret ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Roberto_CalderoliItaly could be the next European country  to consider a referendum on the building of Islamic minarets following the Swiss vote to ban the structures.

Cabinet minister Roberto Calderoli, of the xenophobic Northern League, said Italy should confirm its Roman Catholic roots and hold a vote as soon as possible.

Like the Swiss, Italian voters can have a direct say on an issue if a minimum number of signatures are gathered calling for a referendum. The League is expected to now start the process for a referendum, despite the Vatican expressing unease over the Swiss vote.

Calderoli said the Swiss decision was a triumphant “yes to bell towers and no to minarets” that served as an important example for other European countries losing touch with their Christian identities. Others within the anti-immigration Northern League have called for a cross to be inserted on the Italian national flag to symbolise the deep Christian roots of the country.

The Northern League have frequently made headlines for their views on Islam and immigration, most notably during the Danish cartoon row in 2006, when Mr Calederoli wore a T-shirt emblazoned with one of the anti-Islamic images.

They have also allowed pigs to graze over sites where mosques were earmarked in order to make them unholy, while recently, the Northern League was accused of racism after it emerged that a local scheme to rid a town of illegal immigrants had been nicknamed “White Christmas“.

Daily Mail, 1 December 2009

See also “Swiss minaret ban spills over Europe”, Islam Online, 30 November 2009

And Radio Free Europe reports: “Danish People’s Party head Pia Kjaersgaard welcomed the Swiss ban and said her party would also seek a similar vote. Martin Henriksen, a deputy for the Danish People’s Party, acknowledged that Denmark currently had no mosques with minarets. But he told RFE/RL that Muslim immigrants have to adapt to Danish society, not the other way around. ‘There are plans in Copenhagen and other Danish cities to build grand mosques, and we oppose it in every way possible. And this could be another way to oppose it’.”

Swiss cities march against minaret ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Lausanne protest

Up to 8,000 people in the French-speaking part of Switzerland took to the streets on Tuesday evening to protest against the minaret ban. A march in Lausanne attracted up to 5,000 supporters, while a demonstration in Geneva was attended by more than 2,000 people, with smaller protests taking place in other towns.

In Lausanne the crowd marched from the cathedral to the mosque shouting “no to exclusion” and “no to discrimination”. In front of the mosque, representatives of the Muslim community thanked the four cantons – Basel City, Geneva, Vaud and Neuchâtel – which voted against the minaret ban. “You warmed our hearts,” they said.

The protests were organised by the Movement Against Racism with support from the Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim communities.

Candlelit vigils of several hundred people were organised in the French-speaking towns of Fribourg, Bienne, Neuchâtel and Sion.

Swissinfo, 2 December 2009

Jewish groups criticise Swiss minaret ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Jewish groups have criticised the result of the Swiss referendum in favour of banning the building of minarets on mosques.

The Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities has been vocal against the ban. Dr Herbert Winter, its president, said: “As Jews we have our own experience. For centuries we were excluded: we were not allowed to construct synagogues. We do not want that kind of exclusion repeated.”

British and international Jewish groups have also condemned the result of the referendum.

A spokeswoman for the Board of Deputies said: “We do not seek to interfere in the affairs of other countries but must condemn intolerance wherever it occurs. Swiss Muslims should be made to feel at home in Switzerland, just as we hope that Muslims, Jews and other minorities in this country should be allowed to practise their faiths freely and without restraint.”

She added: “In our own country, we have seen the continuing victimisation of Muslims and other minorities by these groups. These have ranged from intimidatory protests outside mosques, to cemetery desecrations, to arson attacks, and even to murder. The Board of Deputies is appalled by such developments and stands with the vast majority of British society who condemn them.”

The New York-based Anti-Defamation League echoed the sentiments of the Board, and said in a statement: “This is not the first time a Swiss popular vote has been used to promote religious intolerance. A century ago, a Swiss referendum banned Jewish ritual slaughter in an attempt to drive out its Jewish population. We share concerns that those who initiated the anti-minaret campaign may now try to further erode religious freedom through similar means.”

Jewish Chronicle, 2 December 2009

Qaradawi calls for peaceful campaign to reverse Swiss minaret ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Qaradawi 5Qatar’s prominent Islamic scholar and chairman of the International Federation of Ulema (IFU) Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi has urged the Muslims of Switzerland to seek the annulment of the ban on the construction of minarets on mosques in that country, according to reports published in the local Arabic press.

Addressing a message to the Muslims of Switzerland in the context of the referendum in which 57.5% of the Swiss people voted for the ban, Sheikh Qaradawi said:

“Consider yourself as an integral part of the society you live in; be loyal, honest and sincere to your country of domicile. You should work hard and be perfect in whatever work you do for the sake of the progress and betterment of that country. Do not be upset by those who want to antagonise and frustrate you. Indeed you should try to reason with them in a calm and composed manner. Be tolerant and patient whenever you feel hurt and let down.

“The IFU is of the view that this decision, irrespective of the fact that it has been taken on a majority vote, is a new form of animosity against Islam and Muslims in Switzerland. The rest of Europe may perhaps follow suit as indicated by Denmark. It has hailed this vote and announced that it will make a similar move.

“It is obligatory on the part of the Swiss government to take necessary measures to safeguard the lives of the Muslim minority against this animosity.

“The IFU urges the Muslim minority in Switzerland to be calm and restrain from emotional reactions. They should seek to have this decision annulled through legal and democratic channels. And work in co-ordination with all those local and international organisations that have deplored this decision.

“The IFU also calls upon the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) to launch an international campaign against this decision and to expose the double standards practised by the Western countries.”

Gulf Times, 2 December 2009

Michael Burleigh and Taj Hargey on the Swiss referendum

Posted on by Bob Pitt

In the Daily Mail Michael Burleigh opines: “The Swiss have been forced to recognise that many of their people are worried about Islam’s unquestioned, undemocratic encroachments into Western society. And unless our own Government now takes note and instigates a rational but robust debate on the subject, we can expect far more trouble ahead.”

Over at the Times the inimitable Taj Hargey assures us that the ban “does not infringe the religious liberty of Swiss Muslims. Minarets remain emblematic of mosques in the Muslim heartlands but there is no theological reason why houses of worship in the West have to incorporate such towers”.

Indeed, according to Hargey, if there is a rise in bigotry against Muslims across Europe they themselves are primarily to blame: “Only when Muslim immigrants and converts in Europe reject the twisted ideology of a fundamentalist male clergy will the chief causes of anti-Muslim prejudice in Europe recede.”

UN rights chief slams Swiss ban on minarets

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The United Nations’ top human rights official on Tuesday criticized a Swiss ban on building Muslim minarets, saying the measure was “clearly discriminatory.”

Such a ban is “discriminatory, deeply divisive and a thoroughly unfortunate step for Switzerland to take, and risks putting the country on a collision course with its international human rights obligations,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay.

“I hesitate to condemn a democratic vote, but I have no hesitation at all in condemning the anti-foreigner scare-mongering that has characterized political campaigns in a number of countries, including Switzerland, which helps produce results likethis,” Pillay said.

She noted that politics based on xenophobia or intolerance “is extremely disquieting, wherever it occurs.” “It is corrosive, and – beyond a certain point – can become socially disruptive and even dangerous,” she added

Xinhua, 1 December 2009