Beautiful!<\/p>\n
USA TODAY<\/a>: GENEVA \u2014 In the latest move to deny citizenship to those who balk at Swiss culture, authorities rejected the naturalization application of two Muslim girls who refused to take school swimming lessons because boys were present.<\/p>\n The girls, ages 12 and 14, who live in the northern city of Basel, had applied for Swiss citizenship several months ago, but their request was denied, Swiss media reported Tuesday.<\/p>\n The girls, whose names were not disclosed, said their religion prevents them from participating in compulsory swimming lessons with males in the pool at the same time. Their naturalization application was rejected because the sisters did not comply with the school curriculum, Basel authorities said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhoever doesn\u2019t fulfill these conditions violates the law and therefore cannot be naturalized,\u201d Stefan Wehrle, president of the naturalization committee, told TV station SRF on Tuesday.<\/p>\n The case shows how those who don\u2019t follow Swiss rules and customs won’t become citizens, even if they have lived in the country for a long time, are fluent in one of the national languages \u2014 German, French or Italian \u2014 and are gainfully employed.<\/p>\n In April, members of an immigrant family in the Basel area were denied citizenship because they wore sweatpants around town and did not greet passersby \u2014 a sure sign that they were not sufficiently assimilated, the naturalization board claimed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Beautiful! USA TODAY: GENEVA \u2014 In the latest move to deny citizenship to those who balk at Swiss culture, authorities rejected the naturalization application of two Muslim girls who refused to take school swimming lessons because boys were present. The … Continue reading