From Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Ankara (AFP) – Turkey on Tuesday lifted a decades-old ban on headscarves in the civil service as part of a package of reforms by the Islamic-rooted government meant to improve democracy.
The measure was hailed by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose wife wears a headscarf, as a “step toward normalisation” and came into effect after it was published in the Official Gazette.
“We have now abolished an archaic provision which was against the spirit of the republic. It’s a step toward normalisation,” Erdogan said in a parliamentary speech to his ruling party lawmakers.
“A dark time eventually comes to an end,” he said. “Headscarf-wearing women are full members of the republic, as well as those who do not wear it.”
But critics accuse Erdogan of lifting the ban to force his Islamic values on the majority Muslim but staunchly secular nation.
