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Iranian foreign minister warns Swiss of 'consequences' over minaret ban; 'values such as tolerance, dialogue and respecting others’ religions should never be put to referendum,' he says
AFP
Iran warned Switzerland on Saturday of “consequences” over a referendum banning the building of new mosque minarets and urged Bern not to enforce the ban, the official IRNA news agency reported.
The vote went “against the prestige of a country which claims to be an advocate of democracy and human rights,” Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told Swiss counterpart Micheline Calmy-Rey in a telephone call, quoted by IRNA.
In what is being called 'huge surprise,' about 57.5% of citizens accept far-right call to oppose 'Islamization of Switzerland'. Result certain to embarrass country's neutral government
Full Story
Mottaki said last week’s referendum would “damage Switzerland’s image as a pioneer of respecting human rights among Muslims’ public opinion.”
“Values such as tolerance, dialogue and respecting others’ religions should never be put to referendum,” he argued, warning Switzerland of the “consequences” of anti-Islamic acts, IRNA reported.
The foreign minister hoped the Bern government would soon “take necessary steps and find a constitutional way to prevent imposition of the ban.”
'Support Muslim rights'
IRNA said Switzerland’s ambassador in Tehran was summoned on Saturday before the foreign ministry, which protested against the minaret ban which was backed by more than 57% of voters who cast their ballot on November 29.
Calmy-Rey said the referendum was carried out against the will of the Swiss government, which would “use all its means to support Muslims rights,” the IRNA report added.
The referendum on a constitutional ban on minarets was proposed by a rightwing Swiss party and had not been expected to succeed.
Besides the government, the ban was opposed by the bulk of Switzerland’s political parties as well as the economic establishment.
It drew widespread criticism from the United Nations, Muslim states, fellow European countries and the Vatican.
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Originally posted by Roark
They are indeed pretty horrific double standards, as you've rightly pointed out, but then the USA attempting to dictate who can and can't develop nuclear weapons when they sit on a massive stockpile themselves is also hypocritical.
Governments the world over are great at picking and choosing when they want to defend principles, and when they prefer to ignore them.
Ishaq:530 "Get out of his way, you infidel unbelievers. Every good thing goes with the Apostle. Lord, I believe in his word. We will fight you about its interpretations as we have fought you about its revelation with strokes that will remove heads from shoulders and make enemies of friends."
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Qur'an:9:112 "The Believers fight in Allah's Cause, they slay and are slain, kill and are killed."
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Ishaq:324 "He said, 'Fight them so that there is no more rebellion, and religion, all of it, is for Allah only. Allah must have no rivals.'"
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Ishaq:587 "Our onslaught will not be a weak faltering affair. We shall fight as long as we live. We will fight until you turn to Islam, humbly seeking refuge. We will fight not caring whom we meet. We will fight whether we destroy ancient holdings or newly gotten gains. We have mutilated every opponent. We have driven them violently before us at the command of Allah and Islam. We will fight until our religion is established. And we will plunder them, for they must suffer disgrace."
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Tabari IX:25 "By Allah, I did not come to fight for nothing. I wanted a victory over Ta'if so that I might obtain a slave girl from them and make her pregnant."
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Qur'an 4:142 "Surely the hypocrites strive to deceive Allah. He shall retaliate by deceiving them."
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Bukhari:V6B60N8 "Umar said, 'Our best Qur'an reciter is Ubai. And in spite of this, we leave out some of his statements because Allah's Apostle himself said, "Whatever verse or revelation We abrogate or cause to be forgotten We bring a better one."
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Bukhari:V2B24N555 "I heard the Prophet say, 'Allah hates for you for asking too many questions.'"
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Qur'an 13:27 "Say, 'God leads whosoever He wills astray.'"
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Qur'an 8:59 "The infidels should not think that they can get away from us. Prepare against them whatever arms and weaponry you can muster so that you may terrorize them."
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Bukhari:V4B52N260 "The Prophet said, 'If a Muslim discards his religion, kill him.'"
Qur'an 5:51 "Believers, take not Jews and Christians for your friends."
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