Switzerland decides at the polls whether to ban the burqa

Poster in favor of the ban on the burqa in Switzerland, on a street in Geneva on March 1 FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP

A woman dressed in a

black

niqab

that only allows her eyes to be seen and with a frown calls out to the Swiss passerby from a sign demanding "stop extremism."

It is the symbol of a campaign of the nationalist right that comes to an end this Sunday, when Switzerland will decide at the polls whether to prohibit covering one's face in public spaces.

Although the promoters of the popular initiative do not mention Islam and emphasize that their proposal also affects possible protesters who hide their identity to commit crimes, the debate, which has polarized Swiss society, has focused on the veto of the burqa

and the

niqab

among Muslim women.

The Government and most of the parties refuse to ban these garments, which are barely seen in the country, but the polls predict options for tailor-made success.

The debate has been on the table for years in the small and rich country at the heart of Europe and has intensified in recent weeks thanks to the initiative of the so-called Egerkinger Komitee, linked to the ultra-nationalist SVP party (Swiss People's Party, in its German acronym ), and whose objective is “to stop the Islamization of Switzerland”.

This committee already achieved in 2009 that 57.5% of voters approved the ban on building minarets in the country.

The proponents argue that

burqas

and

niqabs

are the visible face of a totalitarian ideology that has no place in a democracy, an Islamic fundamentalism that tramples on women's rights and poses a threat to traditional Swiss values.

"In a free country you show your face," summarizes by phone Anian Liebrand, spokesperson for the Egerkinger Komitee and member of the SVP.

Those who reject the measure see behind it Islamophobia and racism, an attack on religious freedom and the right of women to dress as they want.

“Women must decide about their bodies.

No one can forbid them to wear a veil, and neither can they impose it on them, "says the Swiss Socialist Party.

It seeks to stigmatize Muslims in the name of an equality that is only used as an excuse and to which nothing is contributed, say Los Verdes.

The Government (a collegiate body of the main parties) and a majority in Parliament (in which the SVP is the party with the most seats) consider that legislating on a “marginal phenomenon” in Switzerland, which would basically affect tourists from the region del Golfo, is "going too far", it does not help the affected women and would harm tourism, so they defend a counterproposal that forces them to show their face when identification of the person is necessary and provides aid to promote equality.

"The ban does not offer protection against extremism and terrorism," has argued Justice Minister Karin Keller-Sutter, who insists that the option to legislate should be left to the cantons or regions.

In fact, in Ticino (south) the

burqa

ban has been in

force since 2016 and in the canton of San Galo (northeast) since 2019. In the first, according to Swiss media data, about 60 fines have been imposed for hiding the face but only 28 tourists for doing it with a full veil, and in the second, none for clothing.

In addition, a fortnight of cantons punish and cover their faces in demonstrations and sporting events.

Surrounding countries such as France, Austria, the Netherlands or Belgium have also vetoed the

burqa

, but the critics of the proposal consider that the situation in Switzerland is not the same - extremism appears in some mosques and imams, there have been arrests for links with attacks in other countries and two stabbings in which the police saw a terrorist background.

Around 5% of the 8.6 million inhabitants of the country are Muslims, mostly from the Balkans and Turkey.

Among women,

niqab

wearers

are a very clear minority that the federal Executive has not encrypted, but that a recent study estimates at between 20 and 30 throughout the country.

And none that usually wears a

burqa

, which only allows one to see through a grid that covers the eyes.

Despite the debate, "in the street it is a phenomenon that must be looked for with a magnifying glass," says Andreas Tunger-Zanetti, from the University of Lucerne Center for Religions Research and author of this study, which draws from European investigations and the interview with a

Niqab

wearer

in Switzerland a profile of a socialized woman in the West, with training, who approaches religion between the ages of 17 and 25 and freely decides to wear the garment out of “a mixture of religious devotion and necessity to control what he teaches about his body ”.

Tunger-Zanetti estimates that in the Western context about half are converts.

Regarding the initiative that is being voted on, she thinks that they intend to send a signal "that it does not work, does not lead to a liberation of women in other countries" and can generate a feeling of exclusion among Muslims.

Marianne Binder-Keller, MP for the canton of Aargau of the Mitte (Center) party, rejects that the scarce impact of the burqa or

niqab

is a reason to tolerate it.

“It contradicts the basic rights of the modern state, freedom and equality.

It means oppression and sexualization, ”he says.

"It cannot be said that an injustice is less relevant because it affects few women," she adds by phone.

For her, prohibiting the concealment of the body "does not solve all the problems", but it is "the tip of the iceberg" of a fundamentalism whose extension worries her.

Along with other policies and activists of a moderate Islam, he has been part of a group that defends the prohibition, but does not agree with the committee of the populist right that presents the initiative and that leads a party that has not distinguished itself for the defense of the equality.

The same happens to other voters who are far removed from the ultra-nationalist and anti-immigration ideology of the SVP, but who are inclined to support the ban.

"There have been fractures in all parties and social sectors, also in feminism, around the debate," says Binder-Keller, who will not follow the slogan of her formation to vote against.

Although with majority support in the conservative electorate of the SVP, the proposal also catches voters in other sectors, as polls show, which fluctuate between 49% and 59% approval.

"We do not want parallel societies with different rights, that all women are not guaranteed the same rights," says Binder-Keller, who also sees it necessary to send "a message" to countries that force women to cover themselves from head to toe. .

"We must legislate for Switzerland, not for countries like Saudi Arabia," replies Islam researcher Rifa'at Lenzin, who believes that the initiative basically transmits the message "that Islam is not part of Switzerland."

"It is not a real problem, not even for the Muslims of the country, who are well integrated."

It is intended to violate religious freedom, he believes, and the debate is interspersed with images of ISIS militants wrapped in

burqas

that arouse fears and insecurities.

"You cannot say that the Saudi tourists who shop here are extremists from whom a danger starts," says Lenzin, who fears that the initiative will withdraw Muslims from society or have a boomerang effect.

• Burqa prohibited on Lake Maggiore

The federation of Islamic organizations FIDS, which brings together more than 200 entities, also considers that the promoters of the initiative practice a “politics of symbols”, according to its spokesperson, Önder Güneş, and have launched the discussion “in an inappropriate format” that sends the message that we must "push back the Muslims."

First there were the minarets, now the burqa.

"Will the handkerchief come later?" He wonders.

“The

niqab

is not a typical phenomenon of Islam in Switzerland.

We also do not support that any woman be forced elsewhere, but the ban here does not contribute anything, "he adds.

Although

niqabs

are hardly seen

in Switzerland, "we must combat the problem now to prevent it from growing," says Liebrand, who agitates the threat of extremist Islamism, defends that "only radicals cover themselves up" and that the proposal is also directed against those who take cover in demonstrations to cause chaos.

A vote with a mask

The anti-Kurka initiative was officially registered in 2017, after achieving the required 100,000 valid citizens' signatures to launch it.

After the processing in the Administration, its passage through the Government and Parliament, it reaches the polls in the middle of a pandemic, with the population with half a face hidden by the masks to avoid contagion.

Hygienic and sanitary reasons appear as an exception to the prohibition of hiding the face of the proposal, but the coronavirus has also become an argument for both.

Those who reject the initiative consider that the use of the mask has shown that there is also communication between people who are covered, while the promoters of the veto believe the opposite.

"Many have realized that it is worse, they appreciate more being able to speak face to face," says Anian Liebrand, spokesperson for the initiative.