Three ladies from Saudi Arabia shopping in Interlaken in 2016
Keystone
Face coverings have been banned in public in canton St Gallen in northeastern Switzerland. Two-thirds of voters agreed with the cantonal parliament and supported the so-called “burka ban”, which had been challenged by parties on the political left.
Turnout on Sunday was 35.8%, with a total of 73,830 people – out of a canton of some 500,000 – backing the measure.
The rightwing Swiss People’s Party said it hoped the ban would have a preventative effect. Opponents spoke of “playing to the gallery”, pointing out it was already illegal to force a woman to wear a burka and that the law’s implementation would be “completely random”.
Cantonal police will now have the discretion to decide whether a person whose face is covered “threatens or endangers public safety or the religious or social peace”.
Legal action?
The cantonal police and justice director said he wasn’t surprised by the result, but said it would have almost no effect.
“I’ve never seen anyone in a burka in St Gallen,” said Fredy Fässler, who added he couldn’t imagine the conditions of the ban ever being fulfilled. What’s more, he didn’t expect cantonal police officers would ever fine a woman wearing a burka.
Switzerland’s largest Islamic organisation, the Islamic Central Council, recommended women continue to cover their faces. It said it would closely monitor the implementation of the ban and consider legal action if necessary.
Last month, figures released by the justice ministry showed that the ban had affected masked football supporters the most. Hardly any wearers of burkas or niqabs, the original targets of the ban, have been fined.
Muslims make up around 5% of the total Swiss population, with most being immigrants from the former Yugoslavia.
Kai Reusser / swissinfo.ch
Most Read Swiss Abroad
More
Why cars still reign supreme in ‘rail-nation’ Switzerland
Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather
This content was published on
The past brewing year fell through in Switzerland, partly due to the bad weather. Beer sales shrank again. For the first time, per capita consumption fell below the 50 liter mark.
Compensation for Syrian after pregnant wife denied help on Swiss train
This content was published on
Switzerland’s Federal Court has partially upheld the appeal of a Syrian family being deported from Switzerland to Italy in 2014. The man now also receives compensation.
Swiss-EU negotiations: Cassis to meet Sefcovic in Bern
This content was published on
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis will meet the Vice-President of the EU Commission, Maros Sefcovic, in Bern on Wednesday.
Heavy snowfall in Switzerland causes traffic chaos and accidents
This content was published on
The heavy snowfall late on Thursday and during the night into Friday led to traffic chaos and many accidents in many regions of Switzerland.
Chimpanzee behaviours passed down through generations
This content was published on
Some of the complex behaviours of chimpanzees have been passed down and refined over generations. These include the combination of several tools for foraging.
More than 600,000 rounds of Swiss sniper ammunition reach Ukraine
This content was published on
Sniper ammunition from Swiss P Defence reached Ukraine via a Polish company in July 2023, reported SRF Investigativ on Thursday, citing official information.
Switzerland launches national digital inclusion alliance
This content was published on
The Swiss government launched the Swiss Digital Inclusion Alliance on Thursday with the goal of giving as many people as possible access to digital services.
This content was published on
Parliament in the eastern canton on Tuesday confirmed the ban despite opposition from the cantonal government and leftwing as well as centre-right parties. Under the new law, the burka can be banned in public spaces if the burka-wearing person is considered a threat to security or to “religious or social peace”. St Gallen is the…
This content was published on
A year after the canton of Ticino adopted Switzerland’s only burka ban, the fallout from that decision is much less than feared.
This content was published on
Six women have been fined since a so-called burka ban went into effect in the southern Swiss canton of Ticino last summer.
Burka ban approved in Italian-speaking Switzerland
This content was published on
According to official estimates, only about 100 women in Switzerland wear burkas. The full-body cloaks worn by some Muslim women are few and far between in the southern Swiss canton. And yet about 65% of voters in the Italian-speaking canton voted in favour of the change to the law. The Ticino initiative did not explicitly…
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.