The European Court of Human Rights has confirmed receiving a number of appeals against the Swiss electorate’s decision banning the construction of minarets.
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A spokesman for the court in the French city of Strasbourg said a number of appeals were being considered in addition to that presented by former Geneva mosque spokesman Hafid Ouardiri.
The spokesman, quoted by the French news agency AFP, said Ouardiri’s request would be registered within the next few days and examined according to normal procedures, which could take several months.
Five other letters “of a general nature” have been received by the court after 57.5 per cent of Swiss voters came out in favour of the ban on November 29.
Before the Strasbourg court can examine the appeals in detail, all judicial means of appeal have to be exhausted in Switzerland, even as far as Switzerland’s highest instance, the Federal Court in Lausanne.
The president of the Strasbourg court, Jean-Paul Costa, has admitted that it will not be easy to accept appeals on the issue after the minaret vote in Switzerland, saying it was a “complex legal problem”.
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International Muslim concern at minaret vote
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The vote revealed the hidden fears of many Swiss, and Muslims should respond by trying to build harmony across society, a leading Muslim scholar says. The reaction of Ali Gomaa, the grand mufti of Egypt, was echoed by a number of other Muslim scholars and commentators whom swissinfo.ch spoke to outside Switzerland. “This result should…
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Supporters of the initiative said the Swiss electorate wanted to put a brake on the Islamicisation of their country, whereas opponents were concerned about the violation of rights, not to mention an international backlash and possible boycott of Swiss products. “Forced marriages and other things like cemeteries separating the pure and impure – we don’t…
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According to final results, 57.5 per cent of voters and a majority of cantons backed the initiative. Turnout was high, at around 53 per cent. The result comes as a major surprise and a slap in the face of the government. Opinion polls ahead of the vote had predicted the ban would be rejected by…
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Most people swissinfo.ch spoke to in the streets of Bern on November 29 said they had voted in favour of a ban on the building of minarets. Only two supporters of the initiative agreed to be taped. (Julie Hunt, swissinfo.ch 29.11.2009)
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.