Tuesday, October 13, 2009



Switzerland: Go-ahead for poster with 'racist image of Islam'



We read:
"Zurich city council said yesterday that a poster showing missile-like minarets on a Swiss flag can be displayed ahead of a national referendum on whether to ban the building of minarets at mosques in Switzerland. Zurich followed Lucerne and Geneva in arguing that the posters, which also feature a veiled woman with 'menacing eyes', were protected by free speech.

Basel and Lausanne have banned them saying they paint a 'racist, disrespectful and dangerous image' of Islam.

The posters, which urge a ban on the building of minarets, are part of a campaign by the nationalist Swiss People's Party.

Zurich city council said it disapproved of the posters - which also feature a veiled woman with what could be seen as menacing eyes - because they portrayed Islam as 'threatening, negative and dangerous'. But officials said the posters had to be accepted as part of political free speech in the run-up to the November 29 vote.

The posters argue that the construction of new minarets should be banned because they are a symbol of Islamic political conquest rather than religious freedom. So far, there are four minarets in Switzerland.

The Alpine country saw a large influx of Muslim refugees from former Yugoslavia during the 1990s, and now has over 310,000 Muslim residents, or about four per cent of the population - more than in Britain, where Muslims form 2.7 per cent of the population, according to a recent study by the Pew Forum on Religion.

Source

Translation of the text on the poster: "Stop this. Yes to the ban on minarets"

5 comments:

Dean said...

Would that other countries had the courage to allow free speech as the Swiss do.

Anon said...

Gee,

Maybe they could use a picture of a real minaret. Because that wouldn't look like a missile...

Anonymous said...

...ok the link got taken out. Another try:

Picture of a real minaret.

J. Birch said...

"because they portrayed Islam as 'threatening, negative and dangerous".? .... DUH.

It's not buildings and dumb rhetoric that will stop the very deliberate and highly calculated spread of radical Islam. It's strong borders, and even stronger immigration policies. And some politicians with the brains and the balls to enforce both.

Bobby said...

I don't care where the muslims pray, the only thing that matters is what their Imans are telling them.