Turkish women in police force allowed to wear headscarves
As critics continue to accuse the ruling Justice and Development Party of changing the nature of Turkey’s secular state, government supporters celebrate further relaxations of the earlier headscarf bans as more religious freedom.
The Turkish government’s Official Gazette published Aug. 27 a new ruling according to which female police officers serving with the Turkish National Police are now allowed to wear headscarves as part of their uniform.
The ruling came into force immediately. On Aug. 30, Turkey's Victory Day, the photographs of a policewoman at Taksim Square in Istanbul and of a female officer who was part of the team guarding President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the official celebrations in Ankara appeared in the media.
Though this move has not caused the usual amount of brouhaha — as was the case in the past with similar amendments related to headscarves in public places — it did not go unnoticed. Many critics continue to accuse the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of changing the nature of Turkey’s secular state, while government supporters scorn the “authoritarian secularist mentality” and celebrate further relaxations of the earlier headscarf bans as more religious freedom.
Polarized reactions overwhelmed social media networks, as many users posted angry messages reflecting the usual paranoia that Turkey is becoming Iran. Tweets included examples of photos from different countries showing heavily armed women with face or head coverings, or policewomen hitting women’s rights activists. Supporters of the government’s move responded. One user mocked the critics claiming their minds are stuck in 1980, asking why Turkey would want to be Iran. Another user, in a similarly defying fashion to the critics, posted a photo of policewomen with headscarves in Western countries, sarcastically emphasizing that these countries are more hospitable to practicing Muslim women than Turkey’s secularists.
