Judges ruled that the plaintiffs – three Muslim organisations and a private citizen – were not victims of an alleged human rights violation.
The Strasbourg-based court on Friday announced that the complaints by the applicants were not admissible.
“The main complaint was that a disputed constitutional provision offended their religious beliefs. However, they did not allege that it had had any practical effect on them,” the statement said.
The applicants could not prove either that they were indirect victims because none of them was planning on building a mosque with a minaret in Switzerland in the near future, it added.
The appeals were lodged in December 2009 following approval of a controversial rightwing initiative in a nationwide vote.
A total of six complaints were filed – three of which are still pending.
A majority of 57.5 per cent of Swiss voters came out in favour of the rightwing initiative in November 2009.
Muslims, mostly from the former Yugoslavia and Turkey, make up about 4.5 per cent of the population in Switzerland.
There are only four mosques with a minaret, besides the many Muslim prayer rooms in Switzerland.
Observers point out that the political drive against new minarets is part of increasing opposition to immigrants.
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Minaret ban stays in media focus – one year on
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Twelve months after a nationwide vote in favour of banning the construction of minarets, the town’s mayor is rather unhappy about the continuing publicity while the business community appears to ignore the controversy. The row over the local minaret has not gone away. It had already received planning permission from the town before the vote…
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Their comments come six months after the ban on the construction of minarets was voted in by 57.5 per cent of the electorate. “The minaret initiative was the first in the history of Swiss democracy to be discussed more after the vote than before,” says parliamentarian Andreas Gross in his introduction to the new book…
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Swiss voters’ decision to ban the construction of minarets on November 29, 2009 sparked worldwide criticism from Muslim groups, governments, the United Nations and the Council of Europe – and praise from the European right wing. After the initial wave of international condemnation, the Swiss vote has continued to come in for official criticism –…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.