Free Republic

The architect of the controversial Swiss referendum that resulted in a ban on the construction of minarets has a Turkish heritage, daily Milliyet reported on Wednesday. Born in the Aegean province of Ä°zmir to a Turkish father and a Swiss mother, Soli PardoÂ’s family moved to Switzerland when he was 5 years old, the daily said. Swiss voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on minarets on Nov. 29, barring construction of the iconic mosque towers in a surprise vote that put Switzerland at the forefront of a European backlash against a growing Muslim population. The referendum by the nationalist Swiss...

What importance has the recent Swiss referendum to ban the building of minarets (spires next to mosques from which the call to prayer is issued)? Some may see the 57.5 to 42.5 percent decision endorsing a constitutional amendment as nearly meaningless. The political establishment being overwhelmingly opposed to the amendment, the ban will probably never go into effect. Only 53.4 percent of the electorate voted, so a mere 31 percent of the whole population endorses the ban. The ban does not address Islamist aspirations, much less Muslim terrorism. It has no impact on the practice of Islam. It prevents neither...

The Swiss voted to ban minarets. Liberals worldwide are screaming about the Muslim "victims." One woman explains why this was a vote for tolerance Hirsi Ali is a victim of that potent combination:  Islamic misogyny and European cowardice Dutch authorities were helpless to protect her when she dared criticize the religion of her abusers, and other European countries piddled down their legs and declared her persona non grata rather than defend classical Western liberalism.  This "Feminist Freedom Fighter" overcame it all and now lives in America.  Europe's loss is our gain. Love the Religion, Hate the Political System  She has...

One of the pet peeves of anthropogenic global warming skeptics is how the media and climate change alarmists like soon-to-be-Dr. Al Gore only address events supporting that which they conflate and abuse data to prove. A perfect example is the discussion concerning receding glaciers, as these folks will either ignore when such recession began, .. Maybe even worse, the media alarmists will always ignore information that might throw a monkey wrench into the position they’re trying to advance. With that in mind, it seems a metaphysical certitude American press outlets will ignore reports of glacial expansion around the globe, most...

Iran criticized a Swiss ban on the construction of minarets on mosques, and warned of rising Islamophobia in Europe, Iranian English-language news agency Press TV reported Saturday. According to the report, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki held a phone conversation with Swiss counterpart Micheline Calmy-Rey to criticize the ban, which was approved in a referendum on Sunday. "This move did not befit a country claiming to be a number one advocate of democracy and religious freedom under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights," Mottaki was quoted as saying in the conversation. "The ban will undoubtedly change Switzerland's image as a...

Israel is using the Swiss trading company Glencore to pressure Iran on its nuclear program, according to the Paris-based Intelligence Online. The newsletter reported Nov. 25 that the goal of the Israeli pressure is to deprive of Iran of gasoline and force Tehran to the negotiating table. Until 2008, Glencore was one of three leading suppliers of gasoline to Iran, which while an exporter of crude oil lacks refining capacity and must import gasoline. However, after the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinizhad in June, Glencore, located in Zug and run by South African Ivan Glasenberg and German Willy Strothotte, has gradually...

Mona Eltahawy doesn’t just blast the Swiss for their human-rights hypocrisy after voting to ban new construction of minarets over the weekend. The Muslim essayist also takes the occasion to blast Muslim critics of the referendum for their sudden hue and cry over human rights themselves. In today’s Washington Post, Eltahawy makes the most important point of all, which is the pointlessness of it all: My question for Switzerland and other European countries enthralled by the right wing: When did Saudi Arabia become your role model? Even before 57.5 percent of Swiss voters cast ballots on Sunday to ban the...

...Bosnia's head of the Islamic Community, Dr. Mustafa Ceric said he hoped Europe would restore its values, citing the recent Swiss ban on the construction minarets and the European Union's exclusion of three overwhelmingly-Muslim Balkan countries from a visa-free regime, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday....

EDITORIAL Swiss Ban On Minarets Is Pure Discrimination Sunday's referendum is a reminder that cultural anxieties can be inflamed even in the most tolerant country. December 2, 2009 Integrating Islamic immigrants has proved to be a multifaceted challenge for European nations unaccustomed to religious and cultural diversity. But there's nothing complicated about the decision of voters in Switzerland to prohibit further construction of minarets. It's religious discrimination pure and simple. Sunday's referendum, in which 57.5% of voters approved the ban on minarets -- a traditional feature of mosques -- is a reminder that cultural anxieties can be inflamed even in...

European papers are dismayed by Switzerland's popular vote to ban the building of minarets. Some fear it will backfire, sending the wrong signal to the Muslim world and setting a precedent for other parts of Europe. Several papers criticise the type of democracy practised in Switzerland, which allows ordinary people rather than elected representatives to decide on such matters. However, one popular Swiss tabloid defends the ban as a starting point for a debate on tolerance.

Muslim leaders from around the world condemned a vote in Switzerland to ban the construction of minarets in the Alpine country, raising fresh fears of a backlash against Swiss interests around the world. Voters in Switzerland approved a referendum Sunday to ban the building of new minarets on mosques. Nearly 58% of voters, and all but four of the country's 26 cantons, supported the initiative, with support for the ban reaching 70% in some regions.

Three cheers for the Swiss! As everyone knows, or should know, Islam is at war with the West. Yesterday, via a nationwide referendum banning Muslim minarets in Switzerland, the West finally somewhat fought back. Although this building prohibition is technically an attack on freedom, and only really constitutes a symbolic counter-attack on the evil ideology of Islam, it's still a beautiful thing to see! The ultimate tactic -- in this "clash of civilizations" and cultures -- is to intellectually refute the philosophy of Islam. The secondary tactic is to successfully morally condemn it. The tertiary tactic is to openly hate...

The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) urged US President Barack Obama to use his upcoming address at the U. Military Academy at West Point to speak out against the decision, calling it a move that is "a violation of religious freedom and a breach of international law."

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani religious groups on Monday condemned a referendum in Switzerland that saw voters approve a ban on the construction of mosque minarets, calling it 'extreme Islamophobia.' Switzerland on Sunday voted in favour of a ban on new mosque minarets - the towers or turrets attached to mosques from which Muslims are traditionally called to prayer - prompting dismay and anger in the Muslim world. 'This development reflects extreme Islamophobia among people in the West,' said Khurshid Ahmad, vice president of Jamaat-e-Islami, a Islamic political party that is represented in Pakistan's parliament. 'This also represents very serious discrimination against Muslims.'...

Maybe we could learn something from this? Did thinking like this make your enemies think twice?

Vatican Criticises Swiss Minaret Ban 30 November VATICAN CITY: The Vatican on Monday endorsed criticism by Swiss bishops that a vote in Switzerland to ban the construction of mosque minarets was a blow to religious freedom. Antonio Maria Sveglio, president of the pontifical council on migration, told the ANSA news agency that "we are on the same page" as the Conference of Swiss Bishops. In a statement after Sunday's vote, the conference said it "heightens the problems of cohabitation between religions" while secretary-general Felix Gmur told Vatican Radio it was "heavy blow to religious freedom and integration". The decision by...

The Swiss decision to ban the building of new minarets in Switzerland is sending shockwaves throughout the Muslim world. Muslims and human rights groups have expressed outrage at the decision, depicting it as an attack on Islam and a setback for religious freedom. More than 57% of Swiss voters approved the proposal Sunday in a nationwide referendum backed by Switzerland's right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP), widely associated with anti-immigration campaigns.

If you thought the Danish cartoon controversy caused a ruckus, get ready for this. Reports out of Switzerland suggest that voters have today approved a referendum to ban the construction of new minarets — spires situated next to Mosques for the Muslim call to prayer — across the country. News agencies say that the legally binding decision was backed by an astounding 57.5 percent of the population. A week ago, opinion polls put support for the move at just 37 percent. The move is likely to provoke the kind of mass confrontation that followed the publication of a series of...

November 30, 2009 Europe unites to deplore Swiss ban on minarets Charles Bremner in Paris The Swiss and European establishment united today in deploring yesterday's decision by Swiss voters to outlaw the construction of minarets but conservative leaders warned that the referendum showed genuine fear over Islam on the continent. Swiss officials, media and business leaders voiced shame over a vote that they say will stigmatise the country's 400,000 Muslims and stain Switzerland's name in the Muslim world. In contrast, hard right leaders in France, Austria, Italy and the Netherlands hailed what they depicted as a triumph for the people...

NOVEMBER 29, 2009 Switzerland and the Minaret Sunday's vote keeps European heads in the sand about Muslim immigrants. Nearly 58% of Swiss voters Sunday cast their ballots in favor of banning the construction of new minarets in the Alpine republic, a surprise result that led at least one Swiss member of parliament to declare that "the foundations of Switzerland's direct democracy have failed." That is clearly wrong. Swiss direct democracy shows its mettle when Swiss voters use it to stand up to their political elites, as happened here. Having said that, Sunday's vote, for all the hand-wringing leading up to...

The legally-binding referendum result had not been widely expected and was a huge embarrassment for the neutral government in Switzerland. In the run-up to the vote it had warned that a ban would "serve the interests of extremist circles" and damage economic ties with Muslim states. Anti-immigrant right-wing populists had championed the vote and led an emotive campaign. The Swiss People's Party (SVP), the country's largest in terms of popular support and membership in parliament, used posters depicting a woman in a burka in front of minarets shaped like missiles rising from a Swiss flag.

GENEVA – Swiss voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on minarets on Sunday, barring construction of the iconic mosque towers in a surprise vote that put Switzerland at the forefront of a European backlash against a growing Muslim population. Muslim groups in Switzerland and abroad condemned the vote as biased and anti-Islamic. Business groups said the decision hurt Switzerland's international standing and could damage relations with Muslim nations and wealthy investors who bank, travel and shop there. "The Swiss have failed to give a clear signal for diversity, freedom of religion and human rights," said Omar Al-Rawi, integration representative of...

Swiss Voters Display Rare Crusader Spirit thelastcrusade.org 57 per cent of Swiss voters have said “enough is enough” to the Islamic takeover of their plot of the European landscape. In a vote that displeased the Swiss Government, fed up citizens approved a national ban on the construction of minarets. "The initiative would appear to have been accepted, there is a positive trend. It is a huge surprise," said Swiss television said after polls closed at midday. Ignoring Obama's Cairo declarations, the Swiss still prefer Lederhosen to burqas and turbans.

Early results indicated Sunday afternoon that voters in Switzerland had approved a law that would prohibit construction of minarets atop mosques in the country. The measure was decided in a referendum conducted Sunday.

Bloomberg stories may not be posted on FR. Title only. Link below...

Thirty minutes after the referendum finished at midday, Swiss television reported: “The initiative would appear to be accepted. There is a positive trend. It’s a huge surprise.” According to the respected gfs.bern polling institute an estimated 59 per cent of voters backed the ban. A majority of cantons were also in support of the initiative. “A majority have voted for a nationwide ban on the construction of minarets,” said the institute’s director Claude Longchamp, speaking on Swiss Radio DRS.

A right-wing campaign to outlaw minarets on mosques in a referendum being held in Switzerland today has received an unlikely boost from radical feminists arguing that the tower-like structures are “male power symbols” and reminders of Islam’s oppression of women. A “stop the minarets” campaign has provoked ferment in the land of Heidi, where women are more likely than men to vote for the ban after warnings from prominent feminists that Islam threatens their rights. Forget about tranquil Alpine scenery and cowbells: one of the most startling features of the referendum campaign has been a poster showing a menacing woman...

Swiss media say that exit polls appear to show a 59% yes vote for banning the construction of new minarets on mosques. However a definitive result will be known later today. The populist Swiss People’s Party put forward the proposal – Switzerland has four mosques minarets with two more planned.

Switzerland appears to have backed minaret ban Voters in Switzerland appeared to have backed a call to ban minarets from mosques, according to early exit poll results. By Alexandra Williams in Geneva and Bruno Waterfield Published: 10:16AM GMT 29 Nov 2009 Thirty minutes after the referendum finished at midday, Swiss television reported: “The initiative would appear to be accepted. There is a positive trend. It’s a huge surprise.” According to the respected gfs.bern polling institute an estimated 59 per cent of voters backed the ban. A majority of cantons were also in support of the initiative. “A majority have voted...

Swiss Vote On Anti-Islam Move To Ban New Minarets By ALEXANDER G. HIGGINS, Associated Press Writer November 28, 2009 Swiss voters are deciding in a referendum Sunday whether to accept a ban on the construction of minarets, which right-wing parties regard as symbols of militant Islam. The move — led by the Swiss People's Party, which has campaigned in previous years against immigrants — has stirred fears of boycotts and violent reactions from Muslim countries. Polls indicate growing support for the proposal, but doubt remains about whether it will pass. The seven-member Cabinet that heads the Swiss government has spoken...

Anti-capitalism protesters have brought havoc to central Geneva during a demonstration against the World Trade Organisation. They burned cars and faced up to riot police in a zone near the central bus station of the Swiss town. They also smashed the windows of shops, bank and cafés. The violent protesters were a fringe minority on an otherwise peaceful march of some 2000 people ahead of a three day conference of the World Trade Organisation which starts on Monday. They accuse the WTO of not doing enough to tackle climate change, claiming it is a mouthpiece for the interests of multinational...

The Swiss are to decide this weekend whether to ban minarets on mosques, in what is in effect the first direct vote in a European country on Islam and the practices of Muslims. "The minaret has got nothing to do with religion. It's a symbol of political power, a prelude to the introduction of sharia law," argued Ulrich Schlüer, of the rightwing Swiss People's party, an architect of the campaign. UN experts and human rights activists condemned the campaign as overtly racist. The rightwing anti-immigrant lobby has led the campaign, but it has been joined by some secularist leftists and...

Banner only .... Polanski könnte gegen Kaution freikommen Laut Bundesstrafgericht in Bellinzona könnte Roman Polanski gegen eine Kaution von 4,5 Millionen Franken freikommen. Dies meldet die Tribune de Genève.

Switzerland's data protection commissioner on Friday announced that he was taking Google to court in a dispute over privacy concerns on the US Internet giant's "Street View" facility. Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner, Hanspeter Thuer, said in a statement that he was taking the case to the Federal Administrative Tribunal after Google had refused to apply the majority of measures he had recommended. The Street View facility allows users to take a ground level panoramic view of some locations on Google Maps, based on still photographs taken by specially-equipped vehicles. The Swiss data protection commissioner had repeatedly complained since...

SAN FRANCISCO — Cells from fetuses have “unique properties” that aid in healing, boasts a Swiss biopharmaceutical firm, in response to complaints that it uses fetal cell lines in skin-care products.A Christian watchdog group called Children of God for Life brought attention to the fact that the company, Neocutis, used the cell lines, derived from an abortion, in the products.“It’s absolutely deplorable,” said the Tennessee group’s founder and executive director, Debi Vinnedge. “It’s not even for humanitarian reasons. They are exploiting the remains of a deliberately slaughtered baby for nothing other than vanity.”Vinnedge usually concentrates her watchdog efforts on...

Swiss Muslims Open Mosque Doors Swiss Muslims hope to promote better understanding of their religion Muslims in many parts of Switzerland have invited the public into mosques - three weeks before a vote on whether to ban the construction of minarets. Muslim organisations say they hope their open day will counter what they say are fears and prejudices. The conservative group that initiated the vote - the largest party in the Swiss parliament - says minarets are a symbol of Muslim political power. Opinion polls suggest the proposed ban will be rejected by voters. A Muslim community leader in Zurich,...

Delaware beats Switzerland as most secretive financial center By: Reuters | 31 Oct 2009 | 07:59 PM ET Text Size By Kim Dixon WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- Move over Switzerland. The tiny state of Delaware beats the Alpine country in a contest for the most secretive financial jurisdiction, a tax justice rights group said on Saturday. The United States, led by the eastern seaboard state, took in $2.6 trillion in deposits from non-resident corporations and individuals in 2007, according to a survey of financial jurisdictions analyzed by the Tax Justice Network. The survey of laws, practices and size of inflows in...

Polanski's arrest has caused his victim health problems and job worries, and she just wants to be left alone, her attorney wrote in a court filing. Attorney Lawrence Silver urged a California appeals court to dismiss the criminal case against the "Chinatown" director. The filing with the Second District Court of Appeal on Friday said Samantha Geimer and Silver have received nearly 500 media calls seeking comment since Polanski was arrested in Switzerland on Sept. 26. Geimer, who long ago identified herself publicly, and her family have to contend with such pressure whenever Polanski is in the news, the six-page...

Director Roman Polanski lost an appeal Tuesday to be freed from a Swiss prison ahead of his possible extradition to the United States for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl. The Swiss Criminal Court said releasing Polanski on bail or under house arrest posed a high risk of flight.

A poster featuring a Muslim woman in a chador surrounded by minaret towers that resemble missiles is causing outrage in Switzerland ahead of a referendum next month on whether to ban mosques from having minarets. The campaign is proving so controversial that even some die-hard members of the country's far right are uncomfortable with it. Wangen bei Olten has already been lost. The small Swiss municipality at the foot of the Jura Mountains has become home to a minaret. The Christians in the village fought hard to prevent it -- they collected signatures, lodged official complaints, spoke publicly against it...

A French physicist with the European atomic research centre near Geneva was charged with terrorism offences by a Paris judge last night after investigators said that he offered to work with the North African branch of al-Qaeda. Adlène Hicheur, 32, who is of Algerian origin, was arrested last week with his younger brother after intelligence agents intercepted his alleged internet contacts with al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. The physicist, who works at the giant atomic collider at CERN (European Organisation for Nuclear Research), which straddles Swiss and French territory, told the Islamic group that he was interested in committing an...

William White predicted the approaching financial crisis years before 2007's subprime meltdown. But central bankers preferred to listen to his great rival Alan Greenspan instead, with devastating consequences for the global economy. William White had a pretty clear idea of what he wanted to do with his life after shedding his pinstriped suit and entering retirement. White, a Canadian, worked for various central banks for 39 years, most recently serving as chief economist for the central bank for all central bankers, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), headquartered in Basel, Switzerland. Then, after 15 years in the world's most secretive...

The New York Times published an article last Thursday on the Swiss health care system, which can be viewed here: www.nytimes.com/2009/10/01/health/policy/01swiss.html?_r=1&em. The system is simple. There is no "public option," that is, there is no government health insurance program, such as Medicare or Medicaid. There is very little employer-provided health insurance, presumably because employee health benefits are not tax exempt; almost all health insurance is therefore bought by the insured. Everyone is required to buy a health insurance policy that provides a specified minimum of benefits (they can buy more expensive policies if they want), but there are subsidies for...

Now that the "public option" health care proposal has become a political hazard, the far left and its water-carrying media are turning to other proposals. The New York Times recently produced a piece lauding the Swiss health care system as a model to emulate. It's all the rage amongst elitists and perhaps it can revive Mr. Obama's "plan" from life support. In the piece, "Swiss Health Care Thrives Without Public Option," the author notes that, "Like every country in Europe, Switzerland guarantees health care for all its citizens. But the system here does not remotely resemble the model of bureaucratic,...

You have the Hollywood deviants and their fellow travelers overseas bending over backwards to defend child-rapist Roman Polanski. On the other hand, we the "commoners" should thank the Swiss government for honoring its extradition treaty with the United States and taking the critical first step in bringing the low-life back to our shores to face justice. The e-mail address to the Swiss Embassy in Washington is was.vertretung@eda.admin.ch.

Lawyer: Polanski to ask for freedom today (USA Today can only be linked to)

In court filings this summer, they said the L.A. County district attorney's office had made no effort to arrest the fugitive filmmaker. Sources say the allegations caught officials' attention.Roman Polanski's attorneys helped provoke his arrest by complaining to an appellate court this summer that Los Angeles County prosecutors had made no real effort to capture the filmmaker in his three decades as a fugitive, two law enforcement sources familiar with the case told The Times. The accusation that the Los Angeles County district attorney's office was not serious about extraditing Polanski to facing sentencing in a child sex case he...

Washington Post columnist Anne Applebaum serves up a sickening rationale to excuse film director Roman Polanski fleeing justice for his rape of a thirteen-year-old girl in the 1970s: the Holocaust.Polanski was arrested today in Switzerland on an arrest warrant based on his fleeing justice in 1977.Wrote Applebaum in a web posting at "Post Partisan":He can be blamed, it is true, for his original, panicky decision to flee. But for this decision I see mitigating circumstances, not least an understandable fear of irrational punishment. Polanski's mother died in Auschwitz. His father survived Mauthausen. He himself survived the Krakow ghetto, and later...

ZURICH – Director Roman Polanski was arrested by Swiss police as he flew in for the Zurich Film Festival and faces possible extradition to the United States for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl, authorities said Sunday. Polanski was scheduled to receive an honorary award at the festival when he was apprehended Saturday at the airport, the Swiss Justice Ministry said in a statement. It said U.S. authorities have sought the arrest of the 76-year-old director around the world since 2005. (snip) In Paris, Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand said he was "dumbfounded" by Polanski's arrest, adding that he...

PARIS, Sept 27 (Reuters) - France's political elite rallied to the defence of Roman Polanski on Sunday, calling on Switzerland to free the 76-year-old film director rather than extradite him to the United States. Artists and film makers also urged the release of Polanski, who faces charges of having sex with a girl of 13 in 1977, accusing Switzerland of being overzealous in pursuing the case. Polanski was due to receive a prize for his life's work at the Zurich Film Festival on Sunday, but was arrested on a 1978 U.S. arrest warrant after arriving in Switzerland on Saturday....