Islam in europe

As also stated by OHCHR’s Human Rights Committee a month ago, such a ban runs counter to Switzerland’s obligations under international human rights law, she added.

“This vote reminds us that no societies are immune to religious intolerance. It is therefore necessary more than ever to continue raising awareness and educating people about religious diversity, and enabling all societies to adopt an enlightened and progressive attitude towards the beliefs of other communities,” said Jahangir.

Jahangir stressed that doing so will help to eliminate the grounds for irrational fears towards Muslims.
Unfortunately, these fears have been largely exploited in Switzerland for political purposes, she noted.
The Special Rapporteur emphasized that Switzerland, which has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, must protect and ensure respect for freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

“I therefore urge the Swiss authorities to abide by all their international obligations and to take the necessary measures to fully protect the right to freedom of religion or belief of members of the Muslim community,” she concluded.

The current Swedish EU Presidency criticized the referendum held in Switzerland to ban minarets from mosques in the country.

“The result of the vote is a negative sign. The freedom of religion is a basic freedom no matter what belief you belong to,” Tobias Billstrom Swedish minister of migration and visa policy told a press conference here after a meeting of EU justice and interior ministers.

“The ‘yes’ vote comes as a surprise and a great disappointment,” David Diaz-Jogeix, Amnesty International’s deputy program director for Europe and Central Asia, said on Monday.

“That Switzerland, a country with a long tradition of religious tolerance and the provision of refuge to the persecuted, should have accepted such a grotesquely discriminatory proposal is shocking indeed,” Diaz stressed.

The Secretary General qualified the ban as an unfortunate development that would tarnish the image of Switzerland as a country upholding respect for diversity, freedom of religion and human rights and also as a recent example of growing anti-Islamic incitements in Europe by the extremist, anti-immigrant, xenophobic, racist, scare-mongering ultra-right politicians who reign over common sense, wisdom and universal values.
He recalled that the UN Commitee on Human Rights had clearly pronounced its concern on the ban as a disciminatory practice that violated fundamental human rights including the freedom of religion.

Secretary General Ihsanoglu expressed his deep regret that at a time when the Muslim world and Muslim societies around the world have been engaged in a struggle to fight extremism, the western societies are being hostage to extremists who exploit Islam as a scapegoat and a springboard to develop their own political agenda which in turn contributes to polarization and fragmentation in the societies.

He stated that the development also highlighted the need for promoting genuine dialogue at the grass-roots level to alleviate all misunderstandings and misinformation that lead to intolerance and misconceptions.

In this regard, he appreciated the position of many Swiss political and religious leaders from all sides who expressed unequivocally their rejection for any attempt to undermine the rights of Muslims in Switzerland.

The issue was taken up yesterday, between the OIC Secretary General and Foreign Minister of Swiss Confederation Mrs. Micheline Calmy-Rey who called the OIC Secretary General by phone following the official announcement regarding the results of the voting. The Secretary General conveyed to the Swiss Foreign Minister that with due respect to the sovereign and legitimate right of the Swiss people and democratic principles governing the Swiss Confederation in adopting any legislative measure, the decision of the Swiss people stood to be interpreted as xenophobic, prejudiced, discriminative and against the universal human rights values and it would tarnish the reputation of the Swiss people as a tolerant and progressive society. The Secretary General urged the Swiss authorities to remain vigilant in addressing any move, which may fuel extremism, misunderstanding, misperception and intolerance among communities and that he remained confident that Swiss political leaders would not spare any effort to preserve the image of their country as guardian of the international human rights instruments.

Egypt’s Muslim leader Ali Gomaa, the Egyptian government’s official interpreter of Islamic law, also said the ban is an insult to Muslims and resembles “an attack on freedom of beliefs.”

Of 150 mosques or prayer rooms in Switzerland, only 4 have minarets, and only 2 more minarets are planned.