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‘An invasive restriction of fundamental freedoms:’ UN raps Swiss vote on veil ban

Tuesday, 09 March 2021 7:01 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 09 March 2021 7:42 PM ]

The file photo shows women in niqabs gathering before a demonstration against the Danish face veil ban in Copenhagen, Denmark, on August 1, 2018. (By Reuters)

The United Nations human rights office (OHCHR) has censured as “deeply regrettable” a Swiss vote in favor of banning face coverings for Muslim women in public places, saying the measure will be discriminatory and problematic from a rights persfpective.

In a controversial referendum on Sunday, Swiss voters narrowly approved a bill that bans Muslim women from wearing a burqa, a covering for the whole body, or a niqab, a covering for the face.

The national referendum on the “Burka Ban” was proposed by the right-wing, anti-Muslim party of UDC in Switzerland and approved by 52 percent of voters, despite opposition from the government and the national parliament.

“Switzerland has joined a minority of countries in which the law actively discriminates against Muslim women and this is deeply regrettable,” Ravina Shamdasani, a spokeswoman for the OHCHR, said at a regular UN briefing in the Swiss city of Geneva on Tuesday.

Shamdasani said “a legal ban in this regard will unduly restrict women’s freedom to manifest their religion or beliefs and has a broader impact on their human rights.”

The UN official also said that in cases where women were actually being forced to wear the veil, the ban would punish them for something outside their control and further marginalize them.

“Vague justifications on how the wearing of face coverings would be a threat to safety, health, or the rights of others cannot be considered a legitimate reason for such an invasive restriction of fundamental freedoms,” she added.

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Shamdasani told reporters at the briefing that the measure was approved “after an advertising campaign with a strong xenophobic tone” and at a time that Muslim women in Europe are already facing increased discrimination, stereotyping, hostility, and in some cases, even physical violence because of their clothing.

The approval put Switzerland on track to join countries that have already enacted similar anti-Muslim measures, such as Germany, Austria, Denmark, France, Belgium, Latvia, and Bulgaria.

Anti-Muslim sentiments have been on the rise across Europe in recent years in the wake of terrorist attacks in the continent. The attacks were carried out by the Daesh sympathizers or the terror group’s members who had returned home following their defeat in Iraq and Syria.

Muslim leaders in Europe and around the world have condemned the terrorist attacks.

Moreover, the rise of far-right ideology and the propagation of anti-immigration policies have exacerbated the status of religious minorities in Europe.

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