Switzerland burqa ban law comes into effect 4 years after referendum nod

Switzerland welcomed the year 2025 by putting into effect several new policies, one of them being the ban on burqa. On Wednesday, the Swiss government decided to put the ban into effect across the country. According to Swiss news outlet Swissinfo, the law came out of the controversial “anti-burqa” initiative which was approved by voters across the country by 51.2 per cent.

The ban was supported by the voters in March 2021. The burqa ban is part of the new constitutional article which calls for the probation of covering the face. The federal authorities stated that the violation of the law would be dealt with through the administrative fine procedure to minimise bureaucracy. The administrative fine will be CHF 100 and can be directly paid on the administrative office’s website.

Those who will refuse to pay the fine will be subject to the ordinary procedure which carries a maximum penalty of CHF1,000. It is pertinent to note that the ban on covering the face does not apply in aeroplanes or diplomatic and consular premises. People can also cover their faces in places of worship or any sort of secular site across Switzerland.

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Why face coverings are banned in Switzerland?

According to Swissinfo, the proposal to ban face-covering was brought by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), which was campaigning on slogans like “soft extremism”. While the proposal made no mention of Muslims or Islam and largely focused on protesters covering their faces, the ban was seen as prohibiting women from wearing burqa.

However, the Swiss government opposed the proposal when it was introduced, arguing that it was not up to the state to dictate what women wear. The proposal then went to a referendum in 2021, where the Swiss people narrowly voted in favour of banning face coverings in public. While 51.2 per cent voted in favour of the referendum 48.8 per cent voted against it.

It is important to note that the people in New Zealand are usually given a direct say in their own affairs. The country usually votes in referendums on various national or regional issues. According to research by the University of Lucerne (in German), only five per cent of Switzerland’s population is Muslim originating majorly from countries like Turkey, Bosnia and Kosovo.

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Out of them, no woman in Switzerland wears a burqa and only 30 women across the country wear the niqab. The proposal was formalised into an Act in November 2024, when the government said that prohibition would come into effect from January 1, 2025.

After the ban was imposed Muslim community and human rights organisations such as Amnesty International condemned the prohibition. In a statement shared last year, Amnesty International called the ban “a dangerous policy that violates women’s rights, including to freedom of expression and religion."

After the ban came into effect, the Swiss government made it clear that covering the face remains allowed for reasons of health, safety, weather conditions and local Swiss customs. It will be also permitted during artistic, entertainment purposes and for advertising purposes.

With inputs from agencies.