mister-baseball.com Passionate about European baseball since 2007 The Therwil Flyers enter the 2019 season in the Swiss Nationalliga A with a new head coach John Baum is going to the reigning Swiss vice champion Baum is one of the most successful coaches in Swiss Baseball in the past two decades leading the Bern Cardinals to seven Swiss championships within eight years He has been working with the Flyers since mid-December Brothers refused to shake female teachers’ hands because it violated their faith but politicians say school officials’ compromise went against Swiss culture Switzerland has suspended the citizenship process for the family of two teenage Muslim brothers after the boys’ refusal to shake hands with their female teachers sparked a national debate over religious freedoms had informed education officials in the northern municipality of Therwil that physical contact with women who are not family members violated their faith They were then exempted from a Swiss custom of pupils shaking teachers’ hands with Therwil officials instructing them to avoid contact with male teachers as well to avoid gender discrimination But the compromise sparked a heated response from leading Swiss politicians including the justice minister who insisted that “shaking hands is part of [Swiss] culture” authorities in the canton of Basel-Country where Therwil is located said that naturalisation proceedings for the family had been put on hold Basel-Country spokesman Adrian Baumgartner confirmed a report from the ATS news agency on the suspension The report also noted that such suspensions are common in citizenship procedures as authorities often require supplemental information about the families concerned Amid the media storm that surrounded the handshake exemption Basel-Country requested an expert legal opinion The father of the two boys, an imam based in Basel and a Syrian national, moved to Switzerland in 2001 and was granted asylum Basel’s migration office was seeking more information about the circumstances under which the father’s asylum request was approved Switzerland’s population of eight million includes an estimated 350,000 Muslims Previous similar disputes have centred on Muslim parents who demanded that their daughters be exempt from swimming lessons secured victories in court against schools which sought to ban the full face veil Some male Muslim students in Switzerland will no longer need to shake hands with their female teachers following a ruling that has caused an uproar and consternation in the country Education authorities in the northern Swiss municipality of Therwil reached the controversial decision after two male students complained that the Swiss custom of shaking hands with the teacher is counter to their religious beliefs if the teacher is a woman They argued that Islam does not permit physical contact with a person of the opposite sex with the exception of certain immediate family members The decision triggered an outcry across Switzerland with Felix Mueri who heads the parliamentary commission on science insisting that "shaking hands is part of our culture." "This is a gesture of respect and good manners," he told the 20Minuten news site who heads the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education meanwhile said that "such exceptions to the rules are not the solution." "We cannot tolerate that women in the public service are treated differently from men," he told Swiss television told media she was not satisfied with the decision "It is difficult when someone refuses to adopt our way of life," she said complaining that she had not received any support from the surrounding canton when she had raised the problem with the authorities there who have the power to overturn the Therwil decision did not immediately respond to requests for comment 20/09/2016 By Le News In April this year a secondary school in Therwil exempted two school pupils from the customary Swiss handshake between teachers and pupils the two male pupils requested an exemption on religious grounds the parents of the two Syrian pupils went to Basel Landschaft’s school governing body to challenge the position taken On 14 September 2016, the canton’s schools authority, Das Amt für Volksschulen (AVS) confirming that teachers have the option to require pupils to shake their hand who directs the canton’s education department says pupils shaking teachers’ hands is an act of respect anchored deeply in our society and culture a further challenge could be submitted to the canton’s government Monika Gschwind says she will approach other members of the state’s executive to ensure the ruling is maintained she said a proposal for a new law to deal with such cases The plan includes granting powers to schools’ management to report cases of hand-shake refusal to the migration authorities For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter Filed Under: Immigration Tagged With: Muslim teacher hand shake Basel, Muslim teacher hand shake Switzerland By subscribing you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy Previous Newsletters Copyright © Le News Sàrl 2014-2022 / Company number: CH-550.1.129.786-5 / VAT number: CHE-193.843.357 TVA By subscribing you agree to our Privacy Policy. 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