Voters who supported a people’s initiative to ban minarets last November wanted to make a symbolic gesture against the spread of Islam in Switzerland.

A survey of voters carried out by Swiss universities found, however, that the majority in favour of a ban was not equivalent to overall rejection of Muslims in Switzerland.

The most common reason for voting in favour of the initiative was to make a gesture against the spread of Islam and its model for society, SwissInfo informs.

Around one in six voters said their decision was a reaction against the discrimination of Christian churches in countries where Islam is strong.

Only 15 per cent were critical of Muslims living in Switzerland, leading the study’s authors to conclude that the vote could not be seen as a general rejection of Muslims in the country. Almost two thirds of those polled said that Swiss and Islamic ways of life were compatible.

Let us remind that on November 29, 57.5% of votes cast were in favour of the people's initiative, much to general surprise. Switzerland is the first European country to forbid the construction of minarets.

By SwissInfo