Early results show Swiss minaret ban “yes” vote

by Patricia Turo | November 29, 2009 at 06:45 am

623 views | 44 Recommendations | 39 comments

In a surprise result on Sunday, the exit polls show that the Swiss will vote in favor of a ban on construction of minarets. The Muslim population has reached 4.5% of the population and the Swiss are worried about "creeping Islamization".

Early results show Swiss minaret ban “yes” vote Background on local and national Swiss votes 29 November, GenevaLunch

Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The popular referendum to ban the future construction of minarets in Switzerland will have a strong vote in favour, one of Switzerland’s major pollsters showed as citizens cast their votes Sunday morning. The latest polling result is a reversal of earlier polls, which have shown Switzerland voting against the ban.

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YankeeJim

at 07:28 on November 29th, 2009

If the concern is that being Islamic correlates with being a religious extremist from a sect that promotes terrorism, then public education is the place to begin with the facts.

I am not one in favor of "religious freedom" as I am in favor of more inclusive freedom of thought. When such freedoms are violated by intolerance, such that it violates the laws of the land, then that presents actionable contradiction warranting prohibition.

Sputnic

at 08:42 on November 29th, 2009

Seems a bit oppressive. What percentage of the German population did jewish people make in the 1930s ?

Karl Gotthardt - albertacowpoke

at 09:12 on November 29th, 2009

Thanks for this important story.

Uwe Paschen

at 09:45 on November 29th, 2009

Forcing a group into the underground will create many more problem in the long run.

Roy C

at 10:01 on November 29th, 2009

The group, first of all, can stay out of Switzerland. Second of all, you can worship without a minaret. Third of all, Muslims need to let Christians, Jews, Hindus worship in Saudi Arabia.

When there is a church and a synagogue and a Buddhist temple and a Hindu shrine in Mecca, then we will begin to solve this problem. Not before.

Right now there are quite a few Muslim places of worship in Rome. Time to reciprocate.

EW (not verified)

at 01:30 on December 1st, 2009

I agree with Roy C....time to reciprocate.

Roy C

at 10:29 on November 29th, 2009

Well, thanks, RNG, for having me qualify.

I mean whatever group of Muslims cannot worship their God without a minaret, which is not just an "architectural" aspect, but the highest point in a Muslim city, from where the call to worship is announced.

So, it is a major intrusion, unasked for, by the Swiss.

Yes, they can stay out. First of all, no one has the right to enter someone else's country. You need permission for that. Secondly, if you go to live there, you learn the language and don't try to overthrow the existing system, but rather adapt to it.

And, if you want your religion tolerated, you are clearly obliged to reciprocate, are you not, Mr Liberal?

So, fine with more Muslims everywhere once Mecca has a few churches, synagogues, temples of various religions.

In other words, when the Law of Sharia maniacs get "exorcised" enough so that they can actually live in a multi-cultural society without taking over.

RNG, your objections are emotionality without reason, fear of excess only in one direction. Fear dictates accommodation of the other but since you are unwilling to make demands of reciprocation, you will be subordinated to your one-way idealism. Good Luck.

Sputnic

at 11:19 on November 29th, 2009

A minaret is not essential, why ban it ? How many mosques are there in Vatican city ?

Roy C

at 11:38 on November 29th, 2009

In Rome, there are mosques. Vatican City has no mosques. It is its own country and no one living there is a Muslim. Vatican City is just the grounds of the Vatican, created to separate Church and State by Mussolini under the Lateran Treaty. Not comparable to Mecca. Rome is, though.

In any case, how many Swiss Lutheran Churches are there in Mecca.?

The Swiss have banned the minaret because it changes the architecture and feeling of Swiss cities. I think you know why. A psychologist friend of mine told me a story about why his daughter quit working at Borders.

Apparently, a Muslim came in and demanded that the Koran be placed on the highest shelf in the section on religion. Borders accommodated his request. (It may have been Barnes and Nobel.) At the time I thought she was overreacting. Now I get it. This is very typical behavior. Rejecting the minarets was a way of saying that Switzerland will remain Swiss.

Wasn't one of the reasons for 9/11 that bin Laden didn't even accept Christian troops guarding Mecca?

Sputnic

at 11:54 on November 29th, 2009

Garibaldi overthrew the Papal states more than a hundred years before that. Vatican city is Catholic, Mecca is Muslim, non Muslims are allowed to live outside of Mecca, within Saudi Arabia itself. Non Muslims were allowed into Mecca until the time of the crusades. As regards the book story, does highest shelf mean first book ? What Christian troops guarding Mecca ?

Roy C

at 12:14 on November 29th, 2009

The US troops after the Persian Gulf War.

Garibaldi and the Papal States created the problem. Then the Vatican was part of Italy. So Mussolini gave them money under the Lateran Treaty and the Vatican became its own country.

You keep missing the point.

Marco Borg (not verified)

at 14:06 on November 29th, 2009

Is this a joke? Or do Muslims and appeasers not know anything much about Europe? Do you know how big the Vatican is and it's population? What we need as a start is a Christian church, a Buddhist temple, a Hindu temple and a Bahai shrine in Mecca city for starters.

Marco Borg (not verified)

at 14:08 on November 29th, 2009

Stefcho (not verified)

at 12:01 on November 29th, 2009

Well said, Roy. I am sure similar 'lines in the sand' would be drawn all over Europe - if only the EU weren't so anti-democratic and anti-European itself. Europeans want Europe to remain European - its only our politicians their puppet media celebrate its destruction.

Roy C

at 10:41 on November 29th, 2009

Hey, and once the activist Muslims with a propensity to jihadism are in sufficient number, all those "rights" you hold so dear, such as no taxes for wars, no restrictions of abortion, no restrictions on adoption for gays by faith based organizations, and women's rights, you can kiss good-bye.

All that they have in Saudi Arabia are "faith-based" organizations. No rights for homosexuals, no abortion, no adoptions for gay couples, and the women are lucky if they can drive a car.

Did anyone ever tell you that Mecca used to be a "multi-cutltural" city with a large population of Jews? That was the case until Mohammed decided that Jerusalem was no longer the city in whose direction Muslims would bow, since the Jews rejected him, and instead Mecca would be the capital of the Muslim world.

Then Mecca became exclusively Muslim, as did the entire peninsula.

Sputnic

at 11:38 on November 29th, 2009

Saudi Arabia has shopping malls and everything these days. You are seriously behind the times. They have women in them, with mobile phones, wearing jeans, you can search for sights like these on Youtube. The same in Pakistan and Bangladesh. The great thing about Youtube is that you can see how ordinary people live the would over, it is invariably different to how mainstream media portray things. Most jews of Mecca reverted to Islam, those that didnt plotted to kill Mohammed and so were expelled, notice expelled and not killed (the main conspirritors were killed). Abraham prayed towards Mecca, so did Jesus (geographical features mentioned in the book of matthew, make this highly likely). The peninsular was not entirely Muslim, mostly Muslim yes, the first crusaders found Muslims, Christians and Jews living peacefully side by side.

Roy C

at 11:57 on November 29th, 2009

Women leaving the university grounds where a woman I know well has just been to help set up the electron microscope there had to cover her head. She was not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia.

Shopping malls don't mean squat. Abraham prayed toward Mecca? I have never heard that before.

In any case, Mecca was part Jewish until it got conquered by the Muslims.

If there was so much peace among Muslims and non-Muslims, how come Muslim armies attacked Constantinople for four hundred years? To do what? Had someone denied them trading rights?

Your beliefs are the left's propaganda designed to undermine our own natural capacity to defend ourselves. They are derived from the secularists hatred of the church, not real experience in Muslim countries, nor from a real knowledge of the details of the Crusades.

Sputnic

at 13:47 on November 29th, 2009

Women drive in Saudi Arabia ! The crusaders started it !

Roy C

at 10:38 on November 29th, 2009

It is the Muslims who have historically tried to make Christians and Jews wear distinctive clothing, pay taxes for remaining non-Muslims, forbidden the construction of new churches and synagogues, and so on.

Sputnic

at 11:40 on November 29th, 2009

Please give sources for these allegations

Roy C

at 11:58 on November 29th, 2009

You need to read some books. You can go and look it up in a second on Google. Do it.

Mritunjay

at 12:32 on November 29th, 2009

That's not new of Muslim nations. A nation like Maldives which wants world to walk it on Climate change is not open to change attitute on religious freedom.

President Mohamed Nasheed said yesterday he would seek advice from religious scholars on Islam’s position on allowing non-Muslims to worship in an Islamic community.

In his radio weekly address, the president said the constitution was "very clear" that laws contrary to Islam could not be made or enacted.

While the bill states that foreigners or expatriates will be allowed to worship in the privacy of their homes, involving Maldivians or encouraging them to participate will be an offence.

The bill specifies a jail term of three to five years or a fine of between Rf36,000 (US$2,800) and Rf60,000 (US$4,669) for those in violation of the law. <UN Data- Per capita GDP of Maldives in 2007: USD 3453.7>

Several MPs called for longer jail terms and higher fines, while others said foreigners in violation of the law should be deported.

Barry Artiste

at 10:57 on November 29th, 2009

Gee I wonder what a Mohamed minaret looks like?

Sputnic

at 12:14 on November 29th, 2009

The following cutting is in reference to Nigeria ! Whos talking about Nigeria ? They are in the midst of a civil war !

Roy C

at 12:18 on November 29th, 2009

Sputnik, this is the use of the Law of Sharia, that all the Muslims in Switzerland have some kind of allegiance to propagate, even if it is with ambivalence.

There already have been the skirmishes of a "Civil War" in France between the Arab Muslim immigrants and the French.

Sputnic

at 12:30 on November 29th, 2009

Those examples are not Sharia law. Christians and Jews are to be protected in a Muslim state, as ordered in the Quran. The Battle of Cable street ! Was that civil war ?

Roy C

at 12:00 on November 29th, 2009

Here is a present day one.

Shari’a Dress Codes Imposed on Christian Schoolgirls and Nurses
Kano State Government Also Closing Christian Schools

In Kano State, all girls – including Christians – attending state run
schools are to be compelled to wear the Islamic headscarf. Meanwhile in
Azare, Bauchi State, 12 nurses have been sacked for non-compliance with a
dress code based on Islamic law (shari’a).

On Friday 29 August the government of Kano State issued a directive that
all girls attending schools run by the State Government should wear the
Islamic headscarf, or hijab as it is known. This directive applies to all
girls whether they are Muslim or not.

The directive does not apply to schools run by Nigeria’s Federal Government
or to private schools. However since most private Christian schools in Kano
have recently been forced to close, Christians are left with little choice.
The schools were closed on the grounds that they do not meet required state
standards; these standards include employing imams to instruct in Islam.

Unlike the previous governor of Kano State, present governor Ibrahim
Shekarau has made clear his intention to apply shari’a more vigorously.
Whilst making a stopover at Malam Aminu Kano International Airport, the
president of Sudan, Omar Al-Bashir, pledged any necessary support for the
governor to fulfil this aim, so that all the other northern Nigerian states
would follow Kano’s example.

Neighbouring Bauchi State has recently seen the sacking of 12 Christian
nurses who refused to wear new uniforms designed to comply with a shari’a
based dress code. The Christian Fellowship pleaded with the Nursing Service
Dept of the Federal Medical Centre in Azare to let them carry on wearing
the traditional nurse’s uniform, but they were told it revealed too much of
their legs.

Nigeria has a population of over 120 million, which is evenly divided
between Christians, who live mainly in the South and Muslims who
predominate in the northern states. Twelve of these northern states (out of
Nigeria’s 36) have adopted full shari’a law since 1999. However in the wake
of the furore surrounding the highly publicised case of Amina Lawal many
Muslims are also beginning to wonder if shari’a really brings justice.
Amina Lawal had been condemned to death by stoning for adultery, but has
now been acquitted.

Roy C

at 12:06 on November 29th, 2009

I will find you a better source.

Why did the early Muslims impose a dresscode on Jews and Christians? They were ordered by caliphs and early rulers of the Islamic word to wear a piece of yellow cloth and a belt, as well as a metallic ring, inside public baths they were required to wear bells around their waists, etc.