Swiss voters have their say today on allowing the construction of new mosque minarets, a sign that will test the country in terms of freedom.

The government says opposes a ban, however, a roup of politicians from the Swiss People's Party (SVP), and Federal Democratic Union gathered enough signatures last year to force the referendum.

"The simple fact of holding this vote is disastrous for Switzerland's image," said Hugues Hiltpold, a Radical MP from Geneva. "If it passes, part of what makes Switzerland Swiss will fall — its respect for minorities, its tolerance and freedom."

Polls have shown a narrow margin opposed to the ban, with more than a third in favour and the rest undecided.

Switzerland is home to more than 300,000 Muslims -- about 4 percent of the population, but only a handful of the mosques have a minaret tower to call Muslims to prayers.

There have been no 'extremist incidents' associated with the 150 mosques and prayer rooms, but the minaret issue is seen by many to play out tension over immigration.

Earlier this month, Muslim prayer rooms across Switzerland opened their doors to the public, in the hope of reassuring voters that they had nothing to fear from minarets.

"We view the minaret as a symbol of religious freedom," said Mahmoud El Guindi, of Zurich's Islamic Centre.

"There is sometimes some fear in society, of Islam or the Muslims, based on various political events... and when they come here and they talk to the people and put their questions, they can see that Islam is a peaceful religion like other religions."

The right-wing SVP, the country's biggest party which won 29 percent of the vote in the last election, has drawn accusations of racism for its anti-immigration campaigns, including one featuring white sheep kicking a black sheep off a Swiss flag.

Outside Switzerland, observers are watching the minaret debate with concern. Amnesty International this week called on Swiss voters to reject a ban, warning that forbidding minarets would be a violation of Switzerland's obligations to uphold freedom of religious expression.

And there are hints that some Muslim countries, with whom Switzerland traditionally enjoys good relations, may even boycott the country if a ban is approved.

They are particularly angry that Islam has been singled out, since Sikh temples and Serbian Orthodox churches have recently been built in Switzerland, while synagogues have been present for more than a century.

Switzerland's coalition government is urging voters to say no to a ban, fearing a yes vote could harm the country's image abroad and cause anger among its many different ethnic groups.

Racist posters

Switzerland's Commission Against Racism said Wednesday that an anti-minaret poster campaign by a far-right party was racist, targeting the country's Muslim minority following a ban on the poster in several cities which deemed it to be racially prejudiced against Muslims.

The federal commission issued a damning commentary on the posters and the political party's repeated use of inflammatory images and text, saying that they are a danger to public peace and encourage prejudice and, in general, against Islam.

'The commission believes that this could threaten social cohesion and public peace,' the government commission said in a statement.

'This is equivalent to defamation of Switzerland's peaceful Muslim population,' added the commission.

"Stop! Yes for the ban on minarets," is written in French- and German- language posters next to the image that depicting a woman wearing a burka against a background of a Swiss flag upon which several minarets ressembling missiles were erected.

Critics say the poster incited hatred of Muslims is provoking intense debate in Switzerland.

Basel-City and Lausanne have refused permission for the posters to go up, while Geneva decided to allow them. Several cities asked the Swiss Federal Commission Against Racism for an opinion, which it issued Wednesday afternoon 7 October. Since then Fribourg has banned them, too.

Basel decided the posters violated a local law banning posting items which contain racist or discriminatory content.

Meanwhile, the SVP has threatened to ignore general Swiss codes of conduct and, to get around the ban, would hang their posters in Basel illegally, and not in the designated places for political campaigns.

SVP has also run into accusations of racism in past.

Agencies