The National Council voted by 133 votes to 38 in favor of prohibiting the display of images of an extremist nature, inciting violence and racists. Such a measure had already been adopted in December by the Council of States, the upper house of parliament.
Switzerland, which remained neutral during World War II, came under pressure to align with a number of other European countries in banning Nazi symbols, following the example of Germany, Poland, and several other Eastern European states. This also concerns gestures, words, greetings, or flags. It is possible to give the Hitler salute in public spaces, MP Raphal Mahaim said. "What about, for example, the symbol of Putin's army of aggression? What about the Ku Klux Klan symbol? What about the hammer and sickle symbol? », asks the environmentalist deputy. The question will be much more difficult to address for other extremist symbols, says the MP, who is also a former member of the Swiss National Council and a former mayor of Basel.