They usually vote on more important things too, I don’t get why you seem to believe the opposite. Many people could only hope for this type of democracy. (for better or for worse)
There’re a lot of things that I consider non-issues myself too, but I’m not surprised anymore when others find them very important…
Anyway, this ban will (probably) impact only a few people here. One of the Swiss “peculiarities”.
Yes, I know they do.
But this seems such a waste of public money - to draw up the legislation, and then to Police it.
Out of interest, to anyone, and hypothetically, would the issue of joining NATO (and forgo a neutral status) be allowed to be taken to a public vote by the Federal Government?
Wasn’t this one of SVP’s “initiatives”? There you have your answer.
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Yes, you’re right. I don’t usually see what initiatives gets voted on but I can’t believe I missed this.
Regarding ESSI (sky shield), I can’t believe they were allowed to join, and get heavy subsidies on these defense weapons, but they have got a clause included which means they can choose to cease to be a member if another member gets in an armed conflict.
They still get to keep the missiles through.
Effectively, they’ve got an air-defence system on the cheap, off the backs of other countries.
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Maybe they already voted on all the important stuff, like sausages. 
Only Macron could manage to give a speech on youth apprenticeships amid the COVID crisis while demonstrating the finest mask-handling skills 
… and kudos to his staff member for properly washing the cap after it was dropped 
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You might confuse this with Ticino’s face covering ban, introduced perhaps a decade ago. I seem to recall a couple articles when fines were issued.
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Not absolutely sure if it has to (probably anyway) but can 100% guarantee it would be.
The SVP are trying to get a neutrality referendum together which would scupper Swiss participation in ESSI
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The SVP seem to be getting themselves on the losing side in referenda of late, any future one about neutrality will hopefully go the same way. Times change. Does anyone really believe that in a Russia-NATO conflict that Switzerland will be neutral? The neutrality which worked well ( unless it was your stolen gold that ended up here) for a couple of hundred years is a thing of the past. It has to adapt.
It’s the will of the people, well Swiss people. Adopted by a valid referendum and, finally, passed into law by our government. Written with some many holes in it that it will never actually be implemented.
Wonder what took so long? Referendum should include an implement by date…Failure for the politicians to comply should include a 10% penalty per infraction (given to charity).
That is what Abdul said when his wife was told to lose the bin bag…
Flew into Tehran via KLM, no booze on that flight due to „customs restrictions“ About two hours before landing they announced that we would shortly be in Iranian airspace. All the women got up and paraded to the loo to change into their bin bags.
It was creepy indeed.
On the flight out five weeks later the bin bags came off, alcohol was served and I think the whole plane got wasted.
A ‘burka ban’ sounds rather Trumpian.
Joining Nato would be subject to a mandatory referendum, see §140 of the constitution.
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Bin bags?
This is the de facto minimum dress code in more cosmopolitan cities like Tehran.
Some may choose a more covered up chador, but that’s their choice.
Switzerland is not going to formally join NATO or the EU in the near future. The reality is that it has a “special relationship” with both institutions. The SVP would like to bring about, by referenda, laws that define more strictly how this relationship should work. For me, they want to have their cake and eat it.
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Like it was in WWII then.
It is indeed, but not all live in Tehran where such dress is tolerated and when you go out into the sticks, the bin bag is the height of fashion.
But now that you mention it, all women on the two flights I had to Tehran wore black, perhaps is is due to a higher level of authorities in airport.
Dunno, it is what I observed.
Except that in WW2, the Allies were, by and large, happy to have a neutral Switzerland. The equation has changed.
Well they didn’t know at the time, and didn’t find out until much later, that the Swiss were supplying the Nazis with munitions and factory owners were getting very rich from the profits. And there was the banks laundering Nazi’s stolen gold.
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No idea what sinister conspiracy theories you’re on about.
Switzerland is member of Nato’s Partnership for Peace programme, and of course there’s more than a few contracts with the EU.