Right Wing Party Shocks Again With Posters

The Swiss are voting on a proposal to ban the construction of minarets in Switzerland.The ban was proposed by the conservative Swiss People’s Party, the largest party in the Swiss parliament. Supporters of the initiative see minarets as political symbols and signs of an increasing Islamic presence in Switzerland.

The right-wing party now has unveiled a campaign poster depicting a woman wearing a burka against a background of a Swiss flag upon which several minarets ressembling missiles were erected. It is aimed at getting the population to vote for a ban on minarets in Switzerland in a referendum on the issue in November.

The Swiss Commission Against Racism said Wednesday that the poster campaign defamed the country's Muslim minority. 'The commission believes that this could threaten social cohesion and public peace,' the government commission said in a statement.

The commission said it found that the posters 'feed prejudices, are over-simplistic and presents Islam overall in an unfavourable manner.' They 'suggest that the Muslim minority living in Switzerland represents a danger' and send the message that the Muslim population is seeking to dominate the Swiss people, oppress women and disregard fundamental rights, it noted.

The BBC reported that mosques in Switzerland tend to be found in old warehouses and factories. It said the largest mosque in the Swiss capital, Bern, is in a former underground parking garage. The broadcaster said Switzerland only has two small minarets, one in Zurich and one in Geneva.

More than 310,000 of Switzerland's 7.5 million population are Muslims, making Islam the second biggest religion in the country after Christianity.