As described below, this arrogant move comes amid a larger climate of legal jihad aimed at making Switzerland stop being Switzerland, all while saying it's the Swiss thing to do. "Immigrants Want Cross Removed from Swiss Flag," by Soeren Kern for Hudson NY, September 26 (thanks to JS):
An immigrant group based in Bern has called for the emblematic white cross to be removed from the Swiss national flag because as a Christian symbol it "no longer corresponds to today's multicultural Switzerland."
Ivica Petrusic, the vice president of Second@s Plus, a lobbying group that represents mostly Muslim second-generation foreigners in Switzerland (who colloquially are known as secondos) says the group will launch a nationwide campaign in October to ask Swiss citizens to consider adopting a flag that is less offensive to Muslim immigrants.
Switzerland isn't forcing people to go live there if the flag offends them.
In a September 18 interview with the Swiss newspaper Aargauer Zeitung, Petrusic said the cross has a Christian background and while the Christian roots of Switzerland should be respected, "it is necessary to separate church and state" because "Switzerland today has a great religious and cultural diversity. One has to ask if the State wants to continue building up a symbol in which many people no longer believe."
In the interview, Petrusic said Switzerland needs new symbols with which everyone, including non-Christians, can identify. As an alternative to the current Swiss flag (see image here), Petrusic proposed the former flag of the Helvetic Republic (see image here) which was officially introduced in 1799 and consisted of green, red and yellow colors. "Those colors are similar to the current flags of Bolivia and Ghana and would represent a more progressive and open-minded Switzerland," Petrusic said.
The proposal to change the Swiss flag has been met with outrage across the political spectrum and is sure to fuel anti-immigrant sentiments in Switzerland.
Sylvia Flückiger a councillor with the conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP) said the demands are: "Totally unacceptable. With our Swiss flag there is nothing to change. The next thing you know, they will demand even more, that we change our constitution."
Marianne Binder, spokeswoman for the center-right Christian Democrats (CVP) said: "This is just what was missing, that we need to change our flag. The Swiss flag is part of Swiss identity, precisely because it is inviting for all to want to be involved...even the immigrants."
Stefan Brupbacher, general secretary of the libertarian Free Democrats (FDP) said: "This is utter nonsense. The Swiss cross is an extremely successful and valuable global brand. It is a symbol of success and quality. We will tightly hold on to it, out of love for Switzerland."
The issue of Muslim immigration to Switzerland has been a hotly debated topic in recent years and the flag controversy is sure to add fuel to the fire.
At this point, it is probably a poorly calculated overreach.
The Muslim population in Switzerland has more than quintupled since 1980, and now numbers about 400,000, or roughly 5% of the population. Most Muslims living in Switzerland are of Turkish or Balkan origin, with a smaller minority from the Arab world. Many of them are second- and third-generation immigrants who are now firmly establishing themselves in Switzerland.
The new Muslim demographic reality is raising tensions across large parts of Swiss society, especially as Muslims become more assertive in their demands for greater recognition of their Islamic faith.
The ensuing controversies are fuelling a debate over the role of Islam in Swiss society and how to reconcile Western values with a growing immigrant population determined to avoid assimilation.
Swiss courts have been jam-packed with Islam-related cases in recent years. In one case, Muslim parents won a lawsuit demanding that they be allowed to dress their children in full-body bathing suits, dubbed "burkinis," during co-ed swimming lessons. In another case, a group of Swiss supermarkets created a stir by banning Muslim employees from wearing headscarves.
In August 2009, the Swiss basketball association told a Muslim player she could not wear a headscarf during league games. In August 2010, five Muslim families in Basel were fined 350 Swiss Francs ($420) each for refusing to send their daughters to mixed-sex swimming lessons.
In September 2010, the secretary of the Muslim Community of Basel was acquitted of publicly inciting crime and violence. The charges were pressed after the 33-year-old made comments in a Swiss television documentary saying that Islamic Sharia law should be introduced in Switzerland and that unruly wives should be beaten. The judge said the defendant was protected by freedom of expression.
In November 2010, Swiss voters approved tough new regulations on the deportation of non-Swiss immigrants convicted of serious crimes. The measure calls for the automatic expulsion of non-Swiss offenders convicted of crimes ranging from murder to breaking and entry and social security fraud.
Also in November, Swiss Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga said the approval or extension of residency permits should be closely linked to the efforts immigrants make to integrate themselves. "Compulsory schooling must be respected. Children should attend all courses and exceptions made on religious or other grounds, for example in swimming classes, should no longer be possible," Sommaruga said.
In December 2010, the Federal Commission on Women's Issues called for Islamic burqas and niqabs to be banned in government offices and in public schools. The government-appointed committee said the move would prevent gender discrimination.
In January 2011, a 66-year-old Turkish woman living in Bern was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for encouraging the father and brothers of her daughter-in-law to carry out an "honor" crime against her for her "risqué lifestyle."
In May 2011, voters in canton Ticino, in Switzerland's Italian-speaking region, collected enough signatures to be able to launch a referendum that would ban burqas, niqabs and other Islamic head dresses. If the referendum goes ahead, it will be the first time in Switzerland that citizens have been asked to express an opinion on burqas.
Also in May, Swiss Defence Minister Ueli Maurer said increasing numbers of Swiss Muslims are training in Islamic militant camps in countries like Somalia and Yemen. In an interview with the SonntagsZeitung newspaper, Maurer also said that under current Swiss laws it is difficult to prevent Islamists from raising funds.
The SVP has described the minaret is a "symbol of a religious-political claim to power and dominance which threatens -- in the name of alleged freedom of religion -- the constitutional rights of others."
The SVP has backed its claim by citing a remark by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has implied that the construction of mosques and minarets is part of a strategy to Islamisize Europe. The pro-Islamist Erdogan has bragged: "The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers." Erdogan has also told Muslim immigrants in Europe that "assimilation is a crime against humanity."
In recent years the number of mosques in Switzerland has mushroomed; there now are over 200 mosques and up to 1,000 prayer rooms dotted across the country. Critics fear the mosques are facilitating the establishment of a parallel Muslim society -- one that is especially welcoming to Islamic fundamentalists.
Uh-oh .....the flags of the Scandinavian countries can look forward to interesting times if this becomes a tendency. They all show a cross.
And even worse: it is a Crusader cross, a war-mongering bigoted Crusader cross. Solutions must be found.
But an obvious solution is at hand! I suggest we follow the example of the Saudi flag and change the cross to a Crusader sword. Or perhaps a secular inscription: "The Land is built by Law"?
The design of the Swiss flag came about because Swiss soldiers on the battlefield needed one common identity. Soldiers came from different cantons which had their own flags with different designs. The variety of flags on the battlefield was confusing back in the 14th Century. The solution of pinning one flag on the front and back of the soldiers, as well as their hats was decided.
And, guess what; the same reason for keeping the same flag exists today -- differentiating the Swiss from the enemy!
Denmark, Sweden, Norway, UK, New Zealand. Australia, Iceland, Dominica, Tonga, Tuvalu have the cross in their flags.
Plenty to enrage the followers of the religion of peace and tolerance.
If those evil arrogant bastards don't like the cross then let them piss off back to their former rat infested crap holes where they belong.
The trouble with Switzerland is that the Swiss have allowed a 400,000 strong Muslim power base to be built up over the years. What can be expected now is a continuous stream of demands to accommodate Islam in a Christian country until it becomes dominant in all respects.
I am surprised a similar demand hasn't been made by UK Muslims. The Union flag is made up of not one but three crosses which must totally offend delicate Muslim sensibilities.
The Muslims are overreaching, badly.
They are forgetting why the Pope has Swiss Guards.
They are forgetting that the Swiss provided mercenary soldiers, in the middle ages and renaissance, who fought all over Europe.
They want to poke the Swiss and make them angry?
BAAAD idea.
Tommo, we did have a similar campaign around 3 or 4 years ago in England, as of course the flag of St George represents the crusades and is offensive to non Christians.
Well, as long as these non Christians are Muslim of course.
It seems that the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhists, Jews and other religous denominations don't seem to give a toss what the flag of their host country is. Strange that. Oh, and there was a call to remove the cross from hot cross buns, as it was considered a religous emblem that may offend MUSLIMS.
Tough. If they don't like Christian iconography in a Christian land - well piss off back to the Ummah.
No wait, they're trying to take us over aren't they? Forgot that bit. Won't happen though. EVER. If only they could hear what was being said about this in our English pubs and football stadiums. We will never surrender. We WILL fight them on our beaches, and in our streets and in our homes.
Oh, and maybe we should be demanding that the crescent moon is removed from Muslim flags as it reminds us in the west of the horrors of the Ottomans?
No wait, that would be Islamophobic.....
What's offensive is the savages thinking they can get the Swiss to change their flag.
Well said VJ, Tommo and Tondor. Reminded me of the morning, the day before yesterday. .the sun was just beginning to rise and I was setting off to work. .suddenly and silently a flight of six Canada geese whooshed overhead in perfect delta-formation, coming in to land at our village pond to abide for the winter. The spectacle gave me strength and a bucketful of proper hope.
My opinion...all those Muslims who are offended by the Swiss flag please step forward. Secondly, you can kiss the ass of every Swiss citizen who put up with the Muslim trash for this long before kindly leaving the country.
The ultimate 'insult' for muslims is the mighty English flag - the red cross on a white background - the traditional Crusader emblem.
Fantastic. What a flag. I can't wait to see how this will be "dealt with" as the years go by.
Visiting my brother the other day, I found his son playing with one of these:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Playmobil-4670-Crusader/dp/B0012208OS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1317467935&sr=8-1
How on earth has this managed to slip through the PC, multicultural, leftist polices' net?
I may buy him one of these - check out the face - perfect expression.
http://twitpic.com/yjmhm
"Those colors are similar to the current flags of Bolivia and Ghana"
OK, so what? So, Switzerland should be like third-world Bolivia and Ghana? It's unbelievable. War is coming.
From the article: "In November 2010, Swiss voters approved tough new regulations on the deportation of non-Swiss immigrants convicted of serious crimes. The measure calls for the automatic expulsion of non-Swiss offenders convicted of crimes ranging from murder to breaking and entry and social security fraud."
I wonder what proportion of 'non-Swiss immigrants convicted of serious crimes' are Muslims?
If the Swiss really do up and turf out all non-Swiss serious offenders, that alone ought to whittle down their Muslim Fifth Column considerably.
Sounds like the Turks will need to launch a landlubber freedom flotilla to Switzerland. Interesting that will be, given that most Swiss men still have their military rifles at home. Keeping those rifles at home was the subject of a very recent and hotly debated vote. Like the Israelis, I don't think the Swiss will find it necessary to apologize, either.
And the government is still allowing Muslims into the country because of why???
The more they allow in the worst the situation will get. They already see the problem with Muslims refusing to blend into Swiss society so why allow more in?
Governments need to wake up and stop the influx of people into their countries who have no desire to become part of the culture.
Multiculturalism is a death sentence for any society. It says that your culture is not good enough so you must change it to reflect someone elses values.
Wake up folks, this is not going to get any better.
It is offensive to ANY sensitive person that Muslims take as a role model a pedophile (married Aisha when she was 6 and consummated marriage with her when she was 9 and he was 56) polygamist (had 12 wives after Kadya, an older woman whose wealth he inherited, died) and a murderer, who ordered a gruesome murder (by beheading) of 900 Jews from Medina because they would not accept him as THEIR prophet.
It is offensive that Jews in Europe are again fearing for their safety because Muslims there are harassing them and threatening their lives!
It is offensive that Quaran promotes hostility toward Jews, Christians and "other" while whitewashing those facts and pretending to be like all other religions which have become more tolerant toward ecumenical ideas of tolerance. It is about time to stop this tolerance of intolerance of Islam and take appropriate steps to enforce our laws in our own countries rather than catering to Jihadists (about 300 MILLIONS ready to murder and die for Allahu akbar) whitewashed by 80% of Muslims who still claim that Islam is a "peaceful" religion!
This kind of ideology of hate had led to Hitler and if allowed to continue in the West and UN will lead to another holocaust, because Jihadists have murder in their heart and hate in their minds, while other "moderate" Muslims would again blame the West.
London!
Read Richard Wilburn's poetry on formations of birds--google it - you'll see.
From the article:
"Those colors are similar to the current flags of Bolivia and Ghana and would represent a more progressive and open-minded Switzerland,' Petrusic said.""
________________
OooooKay, Ivica - yep, Switzerland should adopt the identities of GHANA and BOLIVIA?
You must be f8C8ing kidding!
Good luck with that!
Generally, I disliked Switzerland when I visited it, and was happy to leave. They are rigid and focus only on money.
But, they never compromised their security and independence. They were neutral during World War II, but made it clear that any invader could expect a serious problem. Hitler considered invading Switzerland, but likely, too many of his advisers and inner circle had money in anonymous Swiss bank accounts.
Switzerland allowed in exactly as many Jewish refugees from Germany during World War II as its immigration laws allowed, and not one more. Years later, the Swiss banks were preparing to destroy any evidence of their collaboration with Nazi war criminals, but were exposed by Christian fundamentalists.
I'm not a big fan of Switzerland.
But, they seem to have taken leave of their money-loving senses by allowing Muslims the benefit of their once hard-to-get citizenship. I hope the Swiss will take advantage of their independence to initiate a true debate on immigration issues, and take the initiative in straight-out banning Muslim immigration. They will be condemned by the UN, but they are not members of the UN anyway.
This is the problem where culture, origin and ethnicity do not matter anymore. It doesn't matter to Westerners, but it does matter to everyone else, and if you give them the freedom to populate your country THEY WILL DO SO. They're like weeds. "Multiculturalism" is nothing but encouraging invasive weeds to grow in your plot... before you know it they will be choking you to death.
The Saudi Arabian flag is offensive to me.
The iranian flag is offensive to me (says allahu akbar and a stylized version of the shahada).
The iraqi flag is offensive to me (says allahu akbar). This one is really offensive as my tax dollars paid for this change.
GO BACK HOME!! You will feel more "comfortable."
The Crusades were defensive wars against many years of Islamic land conquests and conversions by the sword, plunder, and slavery and murder of non-Muslims. (We needed a Crusade to rescue the people of Darfur, but there was not enough moral courage and too much ignorance about Islam.) Those Crusades did have some success pushing back the Muslim forces, that is why there is talk of reclaiming those lands by global jihadists. That is really why talking about the Crusades causes offense in the Muslim world, they broke up the caliphate.
As far as the Swedish flag being changed from a "Crusader" cross to a symbol the Muslims will be happy with, Islam requires (even eventual) conquest. Don't expect the Muslim population to be happy with anything less than symbols of dhimmitude and/or Islamic domination.
DD. .Double Diamond. .
Thanks for the tip-off 'bout Wilbur. .great stuff. Here's a link -to that poem you might have been referring- I think: http://m.theatlantic.com/past/docs/unbound/poetry/antholog/wilbur/alphabet.htm
. .hardly need to clarify. .yet the above was in reply to Mr David Dowse.
hmmm
why don't the Swiss ask the moslems to adopt a religion that is less offensive to humanity?
Not to be too much off-topic here, but this is exactly why the law of return for all Palestinians should NEVER be instituted for Israel.
Israel would be over-run with Palestinian Moslems in just a few short years... just how long do you think that the Star of David would remain on Israel's flag? How long do you think that other Jewish customs would remain with a Moslem majority?
Israel is the Jewish homeland.
London- that wasn't the one, but WOW, the one you linked by Wilbur is fantastic! How 'bout another?...
Advice to a Prophet
When you come, as you soon must, to the streets of our city,
Mad-eyed from stating the obvious,
Not proclaiming our fall but begging us
In God's name to have self-pity,
Spare us all word of the weapons, their force and range,
The long numbers that rocket the mind;
Our slow, unreckoning hearts will be left behind,
Unable to fear what is too strange.
Nor shall you scare us with talk of the death of the race.
How should we dream of this place without us?--
The sun mere fire, the leaves untroubled about us,
A stone look on the stone's face?
Speak of the world's own change. Though we cannot conceive
Of an undreamt thing, we know to our cost
How the dreamt cloud crumbles, the vines are blackened by frost,
How the view alters. We could believe,
If you told us so, that the white-tailed deer will slip
Into perfect shade, grown perfectly shy,
The lark avoid the reaches of our eye,
The jack-pine lose its knuckled grip
On the cold ledge, and every torrent burn
As Xanthus once, its gliding trout
Stunned in a twinkling. What should we be without
The dolphin's arc, the dove's return,
These things in which we have seen ourselves and spoken?
Ask us, prophet, how we shall call
Our natures forth when that live tongue is all
Dispelled, that glass obscured or broken
In which we have said the rose of our love and the clean
Horse of our courage, in which beheld
The singing locust of the soul unshelled,
And all we mean or wish to mean.
Ask us, ask us whether with the worldless rose
Our hearts shall fail us; come demanding
Whether there shall be lofty or long standing
When the bronze annals of the oak-tree close.
Create Date : Friday, January 03, 2003
Richard Wilbur
______________
I'll find the other one soon, London...
They will be condemned by the UN, but they are not members of the UN anyway.
They are very smart to stay out of the stinking UN. Switzerland is one of the few nations left that doesn't give a whit what the rest of the world wants or does and is determined to preserve its sovereignty. I respect that very much. The UN is totally out of control; utterly corrupt and incompetent and a dangerous threat to the sovereignty of all Western nations with its climate change/Agenda 21 wealth grab. Between the arrogant Marxist wealth re-distributors, the OIC, and the pompous social engineering, utopia- building buffoons, the UN scares the hell out of me. It was created to prevent war and it has been a dismal failure. It was not created to govern the world or build a global, Marxist utopia.
Anyone who is not familiar with the U.N.'s AGenda 21 would be wise to immediately read this unbelievable and horrifying plan, which is being implemented in over 300 American cities as we speak. It will blow your mind and believe me, I am not a conspiracy theorist or an alarmist. You owe it to posterity to familiarize yourself with this diabolical plot and start lobbying your local, state, and national representatives to stop it.
I don't understand why Switzerland has allowed so much muslim immigration. If they need young workers because of a low national birthrate, immigrants from other European countries or South America would be far more compatible. Hopefully the Swiss will not cave to muslim demands and will teach the rest of the world a lesson on how to deal with hostile, muslim ingrates. They act like they are a precious commodity that no country could function without when they are bankrupting the social welfare systems of every European nation!