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At this point we would like to present our three-stage model for "the development of Islam in Switzerland". To illustrate the need for the proactive development of our religious community in Switzerland first the current situation is briefly summarized.

Actual Situation

Currently the Swiss Muslims, compared with Northern and Western Europe, are weakly or not at all organized. Organized are in Switzerland at best the mosques and associations, but not individuals. The integration of Swiss mosques in umbrella organizations certainly brings great benefits at the level of coordination of institutions, but also disadvantages, eg  in the question of representation, of  being close to the Muslim basis and in the coordination of ongoing activities.

Today most of the average mosque-goers are not a member of the sponsoring association of the mosque, which they visit. Indeed some let financial benefits flow regularly to the sponsoring association, to pay the rent and other running costs, but they don't have any connection to the Administration. Still, the image becomes more abstract, if one raises the question of the real representation of such mosque-goers by an umbrella organization.


The absence of a national Islamic basis organization, which is uniting explicitly and first of all individuals regardless of their ethnic or linguistic origin on the common ground of Islamic normativity (iN), is likely to be responsible for that the Swiss Muslims are considered  to be weakly organized in comparison to other European countries. In this gap now with the Islamic Central Council of Switzerland (ICCS) a new, dynamic organization is moving in, whose stated objective is to unite in the future the majority of practicing Muslims institutionally and to defend it against the outside.

The new model offers both the Muslims and the general public several advantages. Every Muslim has by his membership directly the opportunity to give to the ICCS the legitimacy as representatives of Sunni Islam in Switzerland. Furthermore he can also make directly known his personal opinion at any time through a petition to the Board or by a speach presented at the annual meeting. To be near the basis is a big concern to us. Completely following the example of Prophet Muhammad (sallaa ALLAH 'aleihi wa sallam), the accessibility of the  president of the association for all members must stay a perpetual self-evidence. Thus the Board is bound to the base, which is likely to make our model to become of long-term interest to state institutions.

The Three-Stage Model for "the development of Islam in Switzerland"

I. Building of Legitimacy

In the first stage it is about the legitimacy of the Islamic Central Council of Switzerland (ICCS). The legitimacy of a Representatives of Islam can only be measured in relation to the number of its registered members. We currently estimate the possible potential of regular mosque-goers in Switzerland to approximately 50,000 people. Currently about 450,000 people of Muslim background are living in Switzerland. The number should not be perceived as a monolithic entity "Islam". The vast majority of Muslims living in Switzerland is not from the Islamic-Arab heartland, but from peripheral regions, such as the Balkans. In such areas the Islam has been and is in much lesser extent normatively read and practiced. Here, the cultural influences that are mostly of importance as a primary category of identity clearly outweigh. Persons in whom not the religion is strongly identity founding, often consider religious representation to be unnecessary. Rather they identify with their homeland, work or political orientation - can not be summarized under any circumstances in a single category. So the unification of all 450,000 people with Muslim backgrounds in an organization stays at the most an utopian dream target. However, it is feasible to collect people who find themselves in the category of Islamic normativity (iN)

In this first stage the ICCS is focusing besides its daily matters in the enlisting of new members. This is conducted by presenting our ideas in the mosques, by explaining our targets in conferences and in the public.

II. Institutionalization of Islam in Switzerland (from end of 2011 – 2015)

Dar al-ifta'

In the second stage it is about that the Islam gets in Switzerland an institutional framework. For this the Muslims need a recognized theological authority for dealing with Islamic issues, which can not be directly derived from the normativity or require empirical observations, as in the case of sighting the new moon at the beginning or end of Ramadan. As already today in all Muslim and most European countries, there should be also in Switzerland a dar al-ifta' (Fatwa Council), in our thinking composed by an odd number of Islamic scholars who come ideally from different ethnic contexts and represent all recognized schools of Islamic law. Each Council member should have a firm connection to Switzerland, especially speaking a national language and bring in beside a solid knowledge of the political system also an understanding of the cultural peculiarities of the Swiss.

A fatwa is by definition no more than a legal opinion that can not claim compelling legislative action, nor competing with the existing legal order. So e.g. Swiss law professors also draw up expert reports on current issues. Whether contents from such a report will ever gain the force of law depends in a democratic system on the social debate. A similar situation exists with Islamic opinion. They only give an account of the sound teaching of one or more scholars. Whether the Muslim follows such a teaching or joins another qualified teaching is left to his individual decision.

Islamic Schools

Nothing is shaping the development of a man more than his school years. In this time of formation the children i.a. are given a basic moral framework. It is the nature of morality that it is derived according to the religious or cultural context of different standards or traditions. Not only between religions but also between different denominations of Christianity prevail in some cases significantly different moral views (see celibacy). This should not be understood as an absolute relativism to all universal ethical principles. It can not be denied that a society can only function if there is consensus among all communities about the existence of such a universal ethics. However, there is much space for healthy difference. These gaps a Christian-influenced state school cannot close completely for a Jew or a Muslim.

In addition, the secularization discourse tends then to banish all religious matters  from the state schools. The recent ruling of the court of Strasbourg concerning the crucifixes is just one of many prominent examples. For a community that is not ready to sacrifice their religious observance to a new wave of secularization, the only way out is to establish their own schools. In Switzerland there are now Jewish and Catholic schools but no Islamic. This  should change in the future. The Islamic Central Council of Switzerland (ICCS) has set itself the goal to lead a project to build an Islamic primary and secondary school. Concerning the classical curriculum an Islamic school is not different from the state school. Rather, the project is characterized by additions such as Islamic education, Arabic instruction and support for children with deficits in the national language.

Federalization of the Islamic Central Council

In the first phase the ICCS is directed in favor of a streamlined and efficient coordination of activities significantly strongly towards the political center Bern. The central administration of the organization is likely to operate also in the future from Bern. The political system of Switzerland marked by diversity however requires that we begin to become federalistic on long term. Concretely, to the National Association in Bern cantonal sections will be subordinated, which in turn are responsible for operating business in the cantons and municipalities. The building of the sections runs serially, depending on the availability of resources in the cantons.

III. Establishing Islam in Switzerland

The Islamic Central Council in Switzerland (ICCS) is anxious to actively assist Muslims in developing an "Islamic identity in the Swiss society". By this we mean the promotion of an active process of identity formation as "Swiss Muslims". Such a process is for example in England already running for many years quite successfully. Requirement is the efficient organization of practicing Muslims living here, and a permanent intellectual engagement with the question of identity at conferences and seminaries.

The ICCS should offer to the Muslims living here in the first place this organization platform. Under its umbrella, and through its activities the much neglected question of identity should be discussed incessantly. In this sense, we make a valuable contribution to the integration of Muslim immigrants.

Public recognition as a long term goal

After the institutionalization of Islam in Switzerland once has taken place in the fullest possible consensus the issue of public recognition of Islam in the cantons can and should be discussed again. Although a matter of the cantons, it is still recommended to await the establishment of nationwide unified structures, and then to implement paradigmatically on the model of the Reformed and Catholic state churches step by step the Islamic "Mosque country model" in the cantons. We reject uncoordinated solo running in the individual cantons as impractical. Regarding a national integration of uniform structures this way seems to us rather obstructive and inefficient.

Bern, 12th Safar 1431 / 28.1.2010

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* Universal Ethics: Of course, we don't understand this as a one-dimensional, Eurocentric defined construct. Rather we mean ethical principles that are at a given date, recognized in all cultures as valid. Example: Thou shalt not kill, without right.