European state to ban Nazi symbols
Switzerland plans to prohibit the public display of swastikas, the Hitler salute and other Nazi symbolism, its federal government announced on Friday. The decision comes in response to a rise of anti-Semitism in the country since the start of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
The proposed law aims to close a legal loophole that currently allows individuals to display such symbols as long as they don’t actively promote the associated ideology, the Federal Council said in a statement.
The ban will specifically target well-known symbols of Adolf Hitler’s National Socialist regime as well as modified ones like the numeric codes ‘18’ and ‘88.’ The context in which these are displayed will be crucial in determining their legality, the government stressed.
Exceptions to the ban have been outlined for educational, scientific, artistic, or journalistic purposes, allowing for the forbidden logos, images and gestures to be shown under freedom of expression rights. Existing religious symbols that resemble those of the Third Reich will not be affected by this legislation.
Individuals who violate the ban will face fines of 200 Swiss Francs ($224 or 213 euros).
“Racism and anti-Semitism are unacceptable in a democratic and free society,” the Federal Council stressed in its statement.
Consultations on the proposed ban will continue until March 31, 2025. This initiative fulfills part of a parliamentary request and is set to extend to other extremist, racist, and violence-glorifying symbols in a future phase.
Anti-Semitic incidents have risen sharply in different parts of the globe since West Jerusalem launched its offensive against Hamas, which has resulted in nearly 45,000 deaths and over 106,000 people being injured.
The move to bomb the enclave came in response to the October 7, 2023 Palestinian militant attack on Israel, when over 1,200 people were killed and around 250 were taken hostage.
Earlier this year, the Intercommunity Coordination against Antisemitism and Defamation (CICAD) said it had recorded 944 anti-Semitic acts in the French-speaking part of Switzerland in 2023 - a 68% rise compared to the previous year.
