Swiss gov’t urges voters to reject niqab ban in March referendum

Banning full facial coverings will deter tourists and ‘be unhelpful for certain groups of women’, Switzerland’s government says ahead of March 7 vote.

The Swiss government recommended on Tuesday that voters reject a proposal in a planned March 7 referendum to ban full facial coverings such as burqas and niqabs, worn by some Muslim women, saying the move would hurt tourism. Under Switzerland’s system of direct democracy, any proposal to change the constitution goes to a popular vote if supporters raise more than 100,000 signatures. In 2009, Swiss voters backed a proposal to ban the construction of new minarets.