Swiss lawmakers approve proposal to ban Muslim women from wearing burqas in public

A veiled woman walks past Pakistani security personnel in Peshawar on September 17, 2012. A new cartoon superhero disguised in a flowing black burka is set to debut on Pakistani television next month in an animated series which follows her battle for girls' education in Pakistan. (AFP/File)

The Swiss parliament has voted in favor of banning Muslim women from wearing the burqa in public.

The National Council passed the vote 88 votes to 87 with 10 abstentions.

Earlier this year a government committee had voted strongly against the ban, Swiss news service 20 minuten reported.

The ruling will have to undergo further scrutiny and votes before it could be made law.

Members voted in favour of a ruling that “no person shall cover his face in public places and in places or hide in the public domain or the provision of public services (excluding sacred sites).”

Blick am Abend reported that CVP National Councillor Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter said: “The burqa is an expression of misogynistic Islamist ideology. This symbol we need to halt. ”

The burqa has already been banned in the Tessin region of Switzerland with people facing fines for breaching the rule.

Following the introduction of this ban earlier this year a national committee was set up and began collecting signatures to expand the ban across the rest of the country.