Swiss voters back proposal to ban full-face veils in public places

Published 07 Mar,2021 via FRANCE 24 - Voters in Switzerland backed a proposal on Sunday to ban full facial coverings in public places, despite women in Islamic full-face veils being an exceptionally rare sight in Swiss streets.

Official results showed that 51.21 percent of voters, and a majority of federal Switzerland's cantons, supported the proposal.

Even though the proposal "Yes to a ban on full facial coverings" does not mention the burqa or the niqab -- which leaves the eyes uncovered -- there is no doubt what the debate concerns.

Campaign posters reading "Stop radical Islam!" and "Stop extremism!", featuring a woman in a black niqab, have been plastered around Swiss cities.

Rival posters read: "No to an absurd, useless and Islamophobic 'anti-burqa' law."

The ban means that nobody can cover their face completely in public -- whether in shops or the open countryside.

There will be exceptions, including for places of worship.

"Besides being useless, this text is racist and sexist," said Ines El-Shikh, spokeswoman for the Purple Headscarves feminist Muslim women's group.

She told AFP that the proposed law created the impression of a problem, but "there are only 30 women in burqas in Switzerland."

A 2019 Federal Statistical Office survey found that 5.5 percent of the Swiss population were Muslims, mostly with roots in the former Yugoslavia.

'Extreme' Islam concerns

The full-face veil "is an extreme form of Islam", said Yes campaign spokesman Jean-Luc Addor, of the populist right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP).

He acknowledged that "fortunately" there are not many burqa-wearing women in Switzerland, but stressed that "when a problem exists, we deal with it before it gets out of control".

The government and parliament opposed a nationwide ban.

They proposed an alternative law that would require people to show their faces to the authorities if necessary for identification, for example at borders.

Under Switzerland's system of direct democracy, any topic can be put to a national vote as long as it gathers 100,000 signatures in the wealthy country of 8.6 million people.

Rounds of votes take place every three months.

To pass, initiatives require support from a majority of voters nationwide, and from a majority of federal Switzerland's 26 cantons, six of which count as half-cantons in votes.

A 2009 vote that banned the construction of minaret towers on mosques sparked anger abroad.

Indonesia trade, e-ID votes

Two other votes were held Sunday, on a free trade agreement between Switzerland and Indonesia, and an 'e-ID' system.

Swiss voters narrowly approved the free trade agreement with Indonesia, which means that tariffs will be gradually removed from almost all of Switzerland's biggest exports to the world's fourth most populous country, while the Swiss would abolish duties on Indonesian industrial products.

The other vote was on a government plan to introduce a federally recognised electronic identity that could be used for ordering goods and services online.

The idea is that the e-ID would be regulated by law, offering a degree of security and reliability when giving identity details on the internet. It could also be used to open a bank account or request an official document.

Recent polls suggested that a comfortable majority was opposed to the move. It was pushed to a popular vote by critics alarmed at the plan to rely on private firms for the IDs, giving them access to sensitive, private information.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

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