Swiss Ban on Minarets Condemned

(1 Dec 09 - RV) The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights on Tuesday said Switzerland's ban on building minarets was "deeply divisive" and at odds with its international legal obligations.

Swiss voters adopted the ban in a referendum on Sunday, defying the government and parliament which had rejected the initiative as violating the Swiss constitution, freedom of religion and a cherished tradition of tolerance.

Fr Samir Khalil Samir is an expert in Islamic studies and Catholic Theology at St Joesph’s University in Beirut. He says that the ban was sparked from western fears of Islamic domination...