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SWITZERLAND-VOTE-BURQA, LEAD
Swiss region overwhelmingly votes for ‘burqa ban’
GENEVA, Sept 23, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A second Swiss canton will introduce a
regional “burqa ban”, after voters in St. Gallen emphatically voted Sunday to
prohibit all face-covering garments in public spaces.
At the same time, voters across Switzerland resoundingly rejected
initiatives aimed at boosting local farming and promoting more ethical and
environmental standards in food production, amid fears of cost hikes and
reduced consumer choice.
In the northeastern canton of St. Gallen, nearly 67 percent of voters came
out in favour of introducing the implicit “burqa ban”, according to official
results, which showed turnout was 36 percent.
That paves the way for the canton to follow the example of the southern
region of Ticino, where a law was introduced two years ago that appeared to
be aimed at burqas and other Muslim veils.
Three other cantons — Zurich, Solothurn and Glarus — have rejected
introducing such bans in recent years.
A text stipulating that “any person who renders themselves unrecognisable
by covering their face in a public space, and thus endangers public security
or social and religious peace will be fined” was adopted by lawmakers in St.
Gallen late last year.
That law passed the regional parliament with support from the populist
right and centre parties — but the issue was put to the people after the
Green and Green Liberal parties demanded a referendum.
Supporters of the ban insisted in the campaign literature that “it is
integral to our culture and our values to be able to look each other in the
eyes without hiding”.
– ‘Islamophobic’ –
The Islamic Central Council of Switzerland on Sunday slammed the ban as
“Islamophobic”.
Other opponents have insisted the ban was useless, stressing that very few
women wear burqas or other face-covering veils in St. Gallen.
Opponents have also pointed out that the canton already has a law
prohibiting face-covering during demonstrations that require police
authorisation as well as at sporting events.
A review published recently on the effect of the law introduced in Ticino
in 2016 meanwhile showed that football fans had felt the most impact, while
fines for burqa-use could be counted on one hand, the ATS news agency
reported.
Switzerland’s government last year opposed an initiative aimed at creating
a nationwide burqa ban, saying it should be up to the regions to determine if
such measures are appropriate.
Voters across Switzerland are however expected to be called to vote on the
issue next year after the populist rightwing Swiss People’s Party gathered
the 100,000 signatures needed to put any subject to a referendum as part of
Switzerland’s famous direct democratic system.
– Swiss snub ‘fair food’ –
At the national level, the Swiss meanwhile overwhelmingly rejected two
schemes linked to agriculture and food security which urged a shift towards
more ethical and environmentally friendly food production, as well as
protection for Swiss farmers against cheap food imports.
According to projections from the gfs.bern polling institute based on the
official count in a large majority of cantons, 62 and 70 percent of voters
respectively rejected the “Fair Food” and “Food Sovereignty” initiatives.
The “Food Sovereignty” initiative, which had the backing of Switzerland’s
powerful farmers’ union, had among other things called for turning a
moratorium on genetically modified organisms (GMO) into a total ban.
Early polls had suggested strong backing for both initiatives, but support
fell after the government, parliament and other opponents argued they could
send prices skyrocketing, limit consumer choice and might violate
Switzerland’s international trade obligations.
Four French-speaking cantons, including Geneva, supported both initiatives,
but the German-speaking part of the country voted massively against them, the
projections showed.
Swiss voters on Sunday meanwhile emphatically backed a proposal to enshrine
support for cycling in the constitution.
According to the gfs.bern projections, more than 70 percent of voters came
out in favour of adding an article to the constitution giving federal
authorities more responsibility for developing cycling paths across the
country.
BSS/AFP/MRI/1930 HRS