N.O.R.F Posted January 29, 2008 Turkish MPs plan headscarf reform Two major parties in Turkey say they will submit a joint plan to parliament to ease a ban on the Islamic headscarf in universities. The Islamist-rooted governing AK Party and the nationalist MHP say it is an issue of human rights and freedoms. The two parties have enough votes in parliament to overturn the constitutional ban on headscarves. Headscarves were banned in schools and universities in 1980 after a coup by the pro-secular armed forces. This is a controversial matter in a mainly Muslim country whose secular elite - including the military - sees the scarf as a symbol of political Islam, the BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Istanbul says. The move has been criticised by judges and university officials. MHP leader Devlet Bahceli said the joint plan would be submitted to parliament later on Tuesday. Chadors, veils and burkas will not be allowed - no-one will be allowed to use headscarves as political statements against the state Devlet Bahceli, MHP leader "Solving the headscarf issue would relax a large segment of the society," Mr Bahceli was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency. "It is a question of rights and freedoms," he added. The reforms are a compromise though, our correspondent says. The proposed changes state that only traditional scarves will be permitted in universities, tied loosely under the chin. Headscarves that cover the neck, like those worn by many Turkish girls, will still be banned, as will the all-covering burka, or chador. Power struggle Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stressed that this reform will be restricted to universities. It will not apply to women civil servants, including teachers, who are still banned from covering their heads. A power struggle last year between secular forces and the governing AK Party ended with the AKP being comprehensively re-elected in July. So far, there has been no comment from Turkey's powerful army, which sees itself as the guardian of the secular tradition laid out by Kemal Ataturk - the creator of the modern Turkish state. Opinion polls suggest there is strong public support for lifting the ban. And some women refuse to go to university because of it. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7214827.stm Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ms DD Posted January 29, 2008 cajaa'ib. We are in gaallo country where no one can discriminate you for your hijab and here we have a muslim country where the ladies have no freedom to wear whatever they want. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
N.O.R.F Posted January 29, 2008 Change shall cometh! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
