Dispute over the publication of the minaret posters
The provocative minaret poster has been met with opposition in many places. The city of Basel has already banned the SVP’s ad campaign on the minaret ban initiative from public spaces. Media outlets are also struggling with the decision of whether to publish the ads.
Although the pro-committee has not yet commissioned any advertisements in the press, the first publishers have already announced that they will not publish the motif with the mosque towers shooting out of the ground like rockets. Riniger refuses to publish the poster: "The advertisement equates minarets and Islam with violence," Ringier spokesman Stefan Hackh told Bazonline.ch/Newsnetz. However, an advertisement with a different subject or a pure word advertisement by the initiative committee would be examined. It is not yet clear whether Tamedia will also refrain from publication. The decision lies with the publishing directors of the individual publications. In particular, Tamedia spokesperson Christoph Zimmer said that they would wait for the opinion of the Federal Commission against Racism (FCR). The NZZ is taking a wait-and-see approach: if a request is received, publication will be examined in consultation with the editor-in-chief and publishing house management, said spokeswoman Bettina Schibli.
