here is my  sculpture swiss knife // material: Blue Styrofoam// Exhibited in Sakıp Sabancı Museum/ Istanbul

Hisham Maizar

Di tengah adanya kampanye dan referendum anti kubah yang akan digelar hari Ahad besok, umat Islam di Swiss masih bisa merayakan salah satu hari raya umat Islam yakni Idhul Adha.”Id bagi kami adalah waktu untuk bergembira dan bersatu,” ujar Hisham Maizar, presiden dari Federasi Organisasi Islam di Swiss kepada IOL.

“Kami tidak akan berkecil hati karena kampanye (kelompok sayap kanan) yang penu kebencian.”
Seperti kebanyakan negara lainnya, perayaan Idhul Adha di Swiss dilaksanakan mulai hari Jumat 27 November.

Pada hari Ahad, 29 November mendatang akan diselenggarakan referendum yang diusulkan oleh partai sayap kanan Swiss People’s Party/SVP, sebagai upaya mereka melarang kubah di Swiss.
Menurut SVP kubah merupakan simbol syariah dan tidak sesuai dengan hukum Swiss yang sekuler.

“Kami yakin bahwa masyarakat Swiss tidak akan memberi suara untuk proposal pelarangan kubah,” tutur Maizar.

Rencana referendum ini sebenarnya telah ditolak oleh pemerintah, sebagian anggota parlemen dan partai besar di Swiss. Namun partai sayap  kanan tersebut berhasil meng-golkan rencana referendum. Para uskup Katolik dan rabi Yahudi di Swiss pun juga meminta masyarakat menolak pelarangan kubah ini.

Lebih lanjut menurut Amnesti Internasional, bahwa masalahnya bukan terletak pada menara atau kubah, tetapi merupakan bentuk kebencian dan diskriminasi terhadap umat Islam di Swiss.

Tidak Ada Penyembelihan

Suasana Idhul Adha cukup terasa bagi umat Islam di Swiss. Sejumlah toko di daerah La Paix dekat Jenewa menjual berbagai makanan khas Arab, Turki dan beberapa negara balkan yang memiliki komunitas muslim yang banyak.

“Mereka ingin mengganggu Id kami dengan kampanye rasis mereka, namun kami tidak akan membiarkan mereka,” kata Mustafa Kamal, seorang pemilik toko makanan halal.
“kami yakin bahwa masyarakat Swiss tidak akan ambil bagian dalam lelucon ini.”

Akan tetapi masih ada kendala dalam perayaan Id di Swiss. Menurut hukum di Swiss, penyembelihan hewan tanpa ijin pemerintah dilarang. Oleh karena itu, umat Islam di sana hanya membeli hewan kurban lalu mengirimnya ke negara tetangga seperti di Prancis.

Sumber : www.muslimdaily.net

Bekanntlich haben nach wissenschaftlichen Grundsätzen durchgeführte Messungen des Deutschen Zentrums für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) ergeben, dass die Beschallung durch die von Norden her in Zürich-Kloten landenden Flugzeuge überall unterhalb der deutschen Lärmnormen liegt. Mit anderen Worten: Der in jeder Hinsicht logische Nordanflug, nicht zuletzt infolge der geringen Besiedelung, verletzt kein einziges deutsches Gesetz. Die 2001 einseitig verkündete Deutsche Verordnung (DVO) zur Begrenzung der Bewegungen ist also reine Willkür.

Die Auswirkungen sind bekannt: DerFlughafen Kloten hat über 100 Millionen Schweizerfranken investiert. Zudem wurden breite Teile der Bevölkerung gegen den Flughafen aufgebracht. Dass die Flugzeuge nutzlos Treibstoff vergeuden und zudem die Flugpläne möglicherweise nicht einhalten können, sei nur am Rande erwähnt. Hinzu kommt noch das Schadensrisiko bei einem immer möglichen Flugunfall.

Im grossen Kanton im Norden ändern die neuen Erkenntnisse nichts, wie sich dem provinziell wirkenden Netzauftritt des Presseservice des Landkreises Waldshut entnehmen lässt. Ironischerweise weist die Leitseite auf die Rolle des Gebietes als “Brücke zur Schweiz” hin. Nach weiterem Herumstöbern offenbart sich ein Schreiben der Landräte der Landkreise Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, Konstanz, Lörrach, Schwarzwald-Baar, Tuttlingen und notabene Waldshut ins ferne Berlin. Bundesminister Dr. Peter Ramsauer, wird dort aufgefordert, ungeachtet der neuen Erkenntnisse hart zu bleiben und gar nur noch 80′000 Bewegungen jährlich zuzulassen.

Naturgemäss widerspricht dem die Zürcher Volkswirtschaftsdirektion. Sie forderte die deutsche Regierung offen auf, die DVO zu annullieren. Ungeachtet des eindeutigen Sachverhalts übergehen in der Schweiz mit Ausnahme einiger einigen Netzforen den Skandal mit Stillschweigen. Dabei hatte bei Bekanntwerden die Landesregierung verkündet, nun bestehe eine Basis für Neuverhandlungen.

Erfrischend wohltuend hebt sich der Kommentar des bekannten Schweizer Aviatikexperten Hansjörg Bürgi ab. Der Gründer und Chefredaktor der mittlerweile meinungsbildenden Fachpublikation Skynews.ch ab. Er fordert die neue deutsche Regierung auf, der Schweiz entgegenzukommen. Unser Land wiederum müsse dieses Mal endlich innere Stärke beweisen und die Rückkehr zum jahrzehntelang bewährten Zustand fordern. Zudem sei Schadenersatz zu prüfen. Maliziös fügt er bei, dass entsprechende Entschädigungen an Swiss International Air Lines der deutschen Lufthansa zugute kämen…

Der langen Rede kurzer Sinn: Bereits vor der ganzen Diskussion um das mittlerweile faktisch abgeschaffte Bankengeheimnis wurde die Schweiz gezielt angegriffen. Ungeachtet der Sonntagsreden der Politiker und der Paneuropa-Rhetorik geht der Konkurrenzkampf zwischen den Ländern, sprich Interessens- und Wirtschaftsräumen, weiter.

Nur in der Schweiz scheint man das zu vergessen… Woran das wohl liegt? Geht es uns trotz Krise zu gut? Leben die Politiker jedwelcher Couleur mittlerweile (auch bei uns) von den wirklichen Problemen isoliert? Ist dies etwa gar eine Spätfolge des 68er Marsches durch die Institutionen? Betrachtet man den Fliegerfeind Bundesrat Moritz Leuenberger, liegt diese Vermutung in der Tat nahe…

Daniel Stanislaus Martel

BERN — A bear has attacked a man who entered its enclosure at a new park in Switzerland, and a policeman opened fire on the animal to defend the intruder.

Bear Vs Man Edge to the bear

The bear was being treated at the park and the man at a nearby hospital.

Why shoot the bear? He was the victim of a home invasion. So your telling me if someone breaks into my house i shouldnt stop him/them? Oh wait THAT IS whate you libs/progressives do…

http://www.newsvine.com/_news/2009/11/21/3529422-swiss-police-man-attacked-by-bear-in-park

BERN — A bear has attacked a man who entered its enclosure at a new park in Switzerland, and a policeman opened fire on the animal to defend the intruder.

Bear Vs Man Edge to the bear

The bear was being treated at the park and the man at a nearby hospital.

Why shoot the bear? He was the victim of a home invasion. So your telling me if someone breaks into my house i shouldnt stop him/them? Oh wait THAT IS what you libs/progressives want…

http://www.newsvine.com/_news/2009/11/21/3529422-swiss-police-man-attacked-by-bear-in-park

Situated in Western Europe, Switzerland is a federal republic and a multilingual country with four national languages (Italian, German, Romansh and French) and 26 states (also called cantons). One of the wealthiest countries across the world, this nation has been host to organizations like WTO and Red Cross and more.

Following are some of the places to visit when holidaying in Switzerland:

Fraumünster Church

Established in 853 in Zurich, this tourist attraction is rich with architectural features and has huge elaborate organ, Romanesque choir and a striking as well as picturesque built. The major draw of the church that has been pulling tourist and visitors in massive form is the glass windows beautiful stained. The marvelous windows were designed and planned in 1970 by Marc Chagall.

Rhine Falls

One of the dynamic and largest waterfalls of Europe, Rhine Falls is situated in Zurich and due to its natural beauty. The fall has a hill top over it, which holds various shops, restaurant and a medieval castle. When on a holiday in Switzerland, visiting this tourist attraction offers a breathtaking view and spectacular enigma to power of natural beauty. If you re on a holiday in Switzerland during the august, you can also witness superb fireworks presentation hosted by the Rhine falls for celebration of independence of the Swiss land.

Château de Chillon

Château de Chillon is a wonderful medieval castle built in 13th century and is a famous tourist attraction of this Swiss land. The castle has a lakeside location to it and was aimed to manage the area between the lake and mountains for the protection of north-south route. Every year a large number of tourist and visitors come to this castle for its magnificent structure, history and picturesque beauty. Some of the attractions that pull tourist on holiday in Switzerland to this castle are the dungeons, secret passages, courtyard, towers, luxurious chambers, grand knight’s halls, furniture, paintings, huge rooms and frescoed chapel.

Lake Geneva (Lac Léman)

Lake Geneva is spread across both France and Switzerland is biggest lake of central Europe. The lake region of Swiss land is rich with attractions like ski resorts, cathedrals, castle, wine-growing villages, boat cruises and amazing lake view resorts.

Bern

Bern is an ancient city of Europe and is also a part of UNESCO’s world heritage site. This Swiss land has attractions like ornate fountains, astronomical clock, old building and cobbled medieval streets. Bern is also thronged with tourist and visitors as it is also capital to this Swiss land.

Best time to visit or holiday in Switzerland

When holidaying in Switzerland for outdoor activities like capturing major Swiss attractions and architectural tour, the best or the ideal time to visit is the summer months from June-September. While for those who wish to visit this Swiss land mainly for its ski activities, the best time is the November to march.

The Swiss pilot, known as Jetman, has failed in his attempt to fly across the Strait of Gibraltar using only a jet-powered wing strapped to his back. The attempt ended with him ditching the wing and landing in the water and being rescued by a helicopter. The pilot Yves Rossy said that turbulence had caused problems on the intercontinental flight. Bigger clouds than he expected, which he couldn’t get over or round made the attempt difficult.

Pada tanggal 29 November 2009 Swiss akan mengadakan referendum mengenai amandemen konstitusi yang diusulkan yang melarang pembangunan menara di negara ini. Jamaah Muslim Ahmadiyah percaya bahwa larangan tersebut akan menjadi contoh nyata atas diskriminasi agama dan akan menjadi pelanggaran langsung dari negara Swiss atas kewajibannya mengikuti hukum hak asasi manusia internasional.

Referendum didasarkan atas proposal awal dari Swiss People’s Party (SPP) untuk mengubah Pasal 72 dari Konstitusi dengan memasukkan kalimat “Pembangunan menara dilarang”.

SPP dan pendukungnya menyatakan bahwa alih-alih menjadi simbol agama yang penting, justru menara adalah simbol dari suatu tuntutan politik agama (Islam) untuk meraih kekuasaan dan dominasi yang mengancam hak-hak konstitusional orang lain.” Pernyataan ini benar-benar tanpa dasar.

Secara tradisional, tujuan utama dari sebuah menara adalah untuk mengumandangkan azan sebagai panggilan untuk sholat. Panggilan untuk shalat dapat dibandingkan dengan bunyi lonceng dari menara gereja karena keduanya menandai waktu untuk ibadah. Namun untuk menghormati warga setempat, di masjid-masjid Ahmadiyah ini tidak dilakukan dan panggilan untuk shalat hanya dilakukan didalam masjid semata-mata untuk meminimalkan gangguan terhadap warga non-Muslim. Meskipun demikian, menara terus memainkan peran sebagai ciri dari arsitektur Islam.

Menara bukan simbol politik atau sarana untuk mencoba mendominasi masyarakat. Di semua masjid Ahmadiyah prinsip-prinsip Islam sejati mengenai cinta, perdamaian dan toleransi adalah terus-menerus diajarkan dan dipraktekkan. Serangan teroris terus dikaitkan dengan Islam, namun serangan itu adalah tindakan yang sesat dan jahat; mereka tidak ada hubungannya dengan Islam. Al-Qur’an secara eksplisit menyatakan bahwa ‘Tidak ada paksaan dalam agama’.

Berbicara soal referendum ini, Abid Khan, Sekretaris Pers Muslim Jamaah Ahmadiyah mengatakan:

” Kampanye provikatif anti Islam yang dilancarkan oleh orang-orang yang ada di belakang larangan tersebut telah menjadi suatu hasutan yang tidak bertanggungjawab. Sebagai contoh, poster yang menggambarkan seorang wanita berpakaian burqa di depan sebuah rudal berbentuk menara yang bangkit dari bendera Swiss hanya akan menjauhkan ketimbang meningkatkan saling pengertian.

Jika menara itu harus dilarang di Swiss, tidak ada keraguan lagi bahwa ini akan menjadi pelanggaran hak asasi manusia sebagai hak dasar dari umat Islam di seluruh negara dan merupakan pelanggaran langsung terhadap masing-masing Pasal 18 dan 9 dari ICCPR dan ECHR, yang kedua-duanya telah disahkan oleh Pemerintah Swiss. Kedua pasal ini menjamin hak nyata suatu agama.”

Ini adalah kejutan dan keprihatinan bahwa masalah pelarangan menara telah mengangkat dirinya begitu kuat di negara seperti Swiss, yang telah memiliki reputasi untuk perdamaian, toleransi dan sedikitnya prasangka. Ini adalah cita-cita yang terganggu dan terancam oleh undang-undang yang diusulkan dan dengan demikian diharapkan bahwa rakyat Swiss menolak pelarangan menara-menara secara terang-terangan dalam referendum yang dijadwalkan akan berlangsung pada tanggal 29 November.

Sumber: yahoo.com, PRNewswire

Swissinfo.ch reports that Saturday a mentally handicapped man was mauled by a bear after jumping the enclosure fence at Bären Park, a Swiss zoo. Finn, the 4-year-old European Brown Bear, inflicted non-fatal wounds to the head and leg of the 25-year-old man. He climbed over an area of the wall that was 13 foot tall from the inside but was just about 4 foot tall and blocked by a stair rail from the viewing area. Police arrived 5 min later and shot the bear trying to save the man. Finn retreated back to a cave and the intruder was removed from the enclosure. 

After the incident Finn was examined by vets and it was decided that since the bullet shattered in his body, it was best to leave the fragments. Finn is doing better and is being treated with high-dose antibiotics, analgesics and cardiovascular drugs. Although Finn is avoiding movement he is alert and eating. Bären Park says they will be able to better assess his chances of survival in the coming days.

I think its sad that in situations like this its really the animals that suffers. When you intrude on a wild animals territory what do you think is going to happen? I dont know what part of hanging out with carnivores that are bigger, stronger, and faster that you; seems like a good idea. You pretty much would have to be retarded to hop in a pit with bears… Ironically in this case….

If Darwin were alive today I think he would shed a tear…

Starting 10JAN10, SWISS will be expanding its current offerings on the Geneva – London Heathrow service, which sees up to 6 Daily flights being offered. It will be cooperating with bmi on this route, which initially sees bmi aircraft operating for SWISS on some flights. Eventually all flights will be operated by SWISS aircraft.

Schedule as follows:

LX352 GVA0730 – 0815LHR 319 D
LX350 GVA1015 – 1055LHR 320 67
LX350 GVA1020 – 1105LHR 320 x67
LX354 GVA1205 – 1255LHR 319 6
LX354 GVA1215 – 1300LHR 319 x267
LX354 GVA1220 – 1305LHR 319 2
LX354 GVA1250 – 1340LHR 319 7
LX348 GVA1515 – 1600LHR 320 D
LX356 GVA1745 – 1830LHR 319 D
LX358 GVA2000 – 2040LHR 320 D

LX359 LHR0700 – 0935GVA 320 67
LX359 LHR0700 – 0940GVA 320 x67
LX353 LHR0855 – 1135GVA 319 x7
LX353 LHR0855 – 1140GVA 319 7
LX351 LHR1145 – 1425GVA 320 D
LX355 LHR1425 – 1705GVA 319 D
LX349 LHR1640 – 1920GVA 320 D
LX357 LHR1930 – 2210GVA 319 D

A320 aircraft operated by bmi

I realize I’m a bit behind the eight ball considering most of these great little bites came from my friend’s party on the Upper East Side as we watched the New York City Marathon which took place earlier this month, but in honor of today’s Philadelphia Marathon (congrats to all the runners including John Crews and Jutta Merilainen who took home the big honors for the day!) and some other upcoming marathons such as Atlanta on November 26 and the Space Coast Marathon coming up on November 29 to name a few (more information at http://bit.ly/8WaEk3), consider these great little party snacks to keep your non-running crew happy as you cheer on the runners:

Gluten-free pumpkin muffins (a side of sweet cream cheese is perfect!)

Ham and swiss party sandwiches (these are a bit tricky in terms of temperature, so if you want to serve them hot, take them out of the oven after your guests arrive):

Mini cheese grits (mini-muffin style):

Sausage bites (these were my favorite!)

Yogurt berry parfaits with homemade granola:

Presentation is key here too. Huge props to my friend Suzanne for putting together this tasty menu!

This days the Swiss people gonna vote about an initiative for prohibition of arms exportation. Rarely there are things to vote about, who are so easy to decide, as any civilized human clearly understands that any arms lead to killing and killing is a no-go.

Sadly that nevertheless, the prohibition is by far not decided yet, as there is a big amount of not so civilized people who rather serve their greed than the common good. Of course there are those involved who fear about their employment as also the couple of CEOs who are the only ones really making profit out of it – it is understandable that all this people will vote against the prohibition. But they are about 3000 voters against 7 Million who have more to loose then just a job – especially their dignity.

Now the even more sad thing is that many of those 7 Million really beliefe they would gain anything from it. Instead, if one thing is for sure, it’s they will not see even one Franc out of the 700 Million Swiss Francs made from such exportations. Fact is, tax payers are funding each Franc of exportation profit with more then 2 Francs of amends and reparations for the affected countries and their escapees.

Many people just see the big wall in front of them, they are not able to think around the corner. If so, they could see that instead of a little profit, the result of allowing arms exportations is a triple loss: The famous Swiss neutrality* will be gone, as will its integrity and Swiss peoples dignity – and its selling it cheap. This are values that can not be measured in money, once gone, there is no buying them back.

By the end of this month, we will see the true face of Switzerland: A country with heart and honor, or one of greedy cowards.

*Yes, Switzerland is producing and exporting arms for decades. But it was always the decision of some few black sheeps. But now, the result of the votation will be an official decision of the whole country. Nevertheless, even if exportation will officially be allowed, it is still prohibited by the Bundesverfassung (the country’s founding documents), in there, Switzerland is declared to be a neutral country, which by definition is not possible while making profit from arms exportation.

British designer Jasper Morrison has launched a collection of watches for Swiss brand Rado at Vienna Design Week. Called r5.5, the watches are made of black ceramic with hands in steel or yellow. The watches are produced in one size, in a matt or polished finish. The stunning new collection from Rado, the pioneers of the use of high tech ceramics in the watch making industry for more than 20 years. Unpretentious and unassuming. Drawing on its unrivalled knowledge of the material, Rado has produced a range of timepieces that are designed to become a part of who you are. Absolute comfort is the ultimate luxury.

Via & more: Dezeen

It is increasingly evident that ski resorts don’t just cater to skiers anymore. Snow rafting, glacier climbing, hiking and snowboarding are all activities that are offered by different resorts throughout Europe and the United States. If snowboarding is your thing, there are a lot of great resorts in Europe that want you to come and snowboard with them.

Depending on what is most important to you, there are several highly rated resorts that you will enjoy. If you are a snowboarding beginner, you may consider:

Cervinia. This resort is on the Italian side of the Matterhorn, rather than the Swiss side. Recent renovations and improved lift service have elevated this accessible resort to one of the best for beginning snowboarders.

Flaine. This is a French resort that features interconnected collections of lifts and slopes. A high altitude always guarantees snowfall, and its broad slopes are a perfect introduction for beginners.

La Plagne. This French resort is the largest single ski resort in Europe. It features small apartments for tourists to stay in and several beginners’ trails.

Once you’ve practiced on some of those top-rated beginners’ trails, you may want to take your snowboard to more challenging slopes. The following slopes are some of the more highly recommended intermediate level slopes.

Davos. This Swiss resort is more like a ski city, and is one of Europes oldest resorts. It is also the highest city in Europe, guaranteeing snowfall for much of the year.

Madonna di Campiglio. This Italian resort offers fantastic slopes for intermediate snowboarders, and is also known for its incomparable scenery, which is breathtaking in summer as well as the winter.

Trois Vallees. This French resort covers a huge area, and is so broadly spread out that snowboarders will be able to take to the slopes without seeing another boarder if they want to. For intermediate boarders, this gives you the freedom to experiment and hone your newly perfected skills.

And if you’ve advanced to the level of expert snowboarder, you may already have your own favourite slopes, but if not, here are some good ones to keep in mind:

Verbier. The Swiss resort of Verbier offers some of the Alps’ most challenging slopes. If you snowboar here, you have the chance to stay in a genuine Swiss chalet.

Chamonix. This is the most famous ski town in France, and is popular with snowboarders, as well. The valley stretches out for more than ten miles, with ski slopes running down the valley walls at regular intervals. It features some of the world’s best slopes for advanced skiiers and snowboarders.

Copyright (c) 2008 directline-holidays.co.uk