After watching the conservative opposition Swiss People's Party celebrate a victory at the polls,with voters approving a measure banning the Muslim minaret, JTA reports (via TPM) that a member of the coalition government is now planning other restrictions as well, to capitalize, I presume, on the mood of the public:
A mainstream Swiss political leader is calling for a ban on separate Muslim and Jewish cemeteries.
Christophe Darbellay, president of the Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland, made the statement in a television interview Tuesday, two days after Swiss voters passed an initiative to ban minarets.
…Critics say Darbellay is starting a "crusade" to attract voters by proposing similarly xenophobic measures.
…
Darbellay reportedly said that existing cemeteries would not be affected by a ban, but that there should be no separate cemeteries in the future.
Well, I guess that's got to make people feel better: there will be no government-led decimation of current cemeteries.
Meanwhile, the Swiss People's Party has its own plans to build on their success. Via Howard Friedman, Islam Online reports:
"Voters gave a strong signal to stop the claim to power by political Islam in Switzerland at the expense of our laws and values," SVP lawmaker Adrian Amstutz told Swissinfo on Tuesday, December 1.
"Muslims must be spurred to integrate into society."
He said the SVP, the largest party in parliament, would also seek a ban on burqa – a loose body-covering including a face-veil – building Muslim cemeteries and exempting Muslim pupils from mixed swimming lessons.
"Forced marriages, female circumcision, special dispensation from swimming lessons and the burka are top of the list," Amstutz asserted.
