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Turkey Lifts Head Scarf Ban

Emotional issue symbolic of class struggle

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Feb 9, 2008 1:05 PM CST

(Newser) – Turkey’s parliament today lifted the decade-old ban on wearing Muslim head scarves in college, the New York Times reports, a major salvo in the growing battle between Turkey’s growing devout middle class and entrenched secular elite. Proponents of the ban, who fear women... Read full story »

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Islam • Turkey • Recep Tayyip Erdogan • headscarves • Muslim women

More Newser Stories

Turkey May Lift Headscarf Ban

Constitutional reform would permit Muslim garb in universities

(NEWSER) - A debate is raging in secular Turkey over the ban on headscarves that has resulted in Muslim women who don them being barred from universities since 1980. Now, PM Erdogan is considering drafting a new constitution with a less stringent dress code that has made many Turkish women hopeful—and many staunch secularists nervous, Der Spiegel reports. More»

Turkey's PM Could Fall Over Headscarves

Attack by 'extreme' secular judges will hopefully fall short

(NEWSER) - Turkey's secular judges want to oust the ruling party for its moderate, and popular, stance on religion freedoms, Mustafa Akyol writes in the American. On paper, the judiciary seeks to punish the incumbent AKP party for crimes such as nepotism and corruption. In reality, Akyol writes, the AKP's support for headscarves in Turkish universities is what sparked judicial rage. More»

Turkey to Lift Head Scarf Ban at Universities

Agreement alarms secular elite, which fears Islamist rule

(NEWSER) - Turkey is expected to do away with a 2-decade-old ban on women wearing head scarves at the nation’s universities as early as next week. The prospect alarms the country’s secular elite, who see the country on a slippery slope to Islamist rule, Der Spiegel reports. “The logic is one of fear,” explains the director of a Turkish think tank. More»

Foes Gear to Fight New Bid By Ex-Islamist to Lead Turkey

Critics fear extreme religious shift for nation

(NEWSER) - Turkish secularists are bracing for another clash over the presidential candidacy of Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, a devout Muslim and one-time Islamist party member who critics fear plans to enforce extreme religious principals in public life. The last time he was nominated as the ruling party's candidate, just three months ago, the army threatened a coup, and thousands took to the streets. More»

Turkish Elections Boost PM

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(NEWSER) - Turkey’s ruling party dominated parliamentary elections today despite its perceived threat to the nation’s entrenched secularism. The elections were moved up after the secular opposition foiled PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan's attempt to install an ex-Islamist ally as president. The results, seen as a mandate for the AKP, also raise the risk of increased conflict, Reuters reports. More»

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Turkey Lifts Head Scarf Ban

Emotional issue symbolic of class struggle

Islam • Turkey • Recep Tayyip Erdogan • headscarves • Muslim women

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More Newser Stories

Turkey May Lift Headscarf Ban

Constitutional reform would permit Muslim garb in universities

Turkey's PM Could Fall Over Headscarves

Attack by 'extreme' secular judges will hopefully fall short

Turkey to Lift Head Scarf Ban at Universities

Agreement alarms secular elite, which fears Islamist rule

Foes Gear to Fight New Bid By Ex-Islamist to Lead Turkey

Critics fear extreme religious shift for nation

Turkish Elections Boost PM

Islamist-rooted, pro-EU ruling party sees mandate in results

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