Azerbaijan’s school hijab ban: What’s behind it, and what’s next?

I am hurt,” she said. “[The hijab] is a personal choice, and if one day I want to take it off, that should be my choice too.”The state-run Azerbaijani Press Agency (APA) said the amendment to the Descriptions of Uniforms for Students of State General Education Institutions aimed to ensure a unified dress code that reflects the country’s “secular principle”.About 96 percent of Azerbaijan’s population identifies as Muslim.

Its constitution defines the country as secular while also guaranteeing religious freedom.The APA added that clothes that reflect the “history, culture, and national and moral values of the Azerbaijani people” may be worn for celebrations pending approval by the Pedagogical Council, which operates under the Ministry of Science and Education.Such clothing ensures that teachers reflect “professional standards” and will have positive effects on the “school’s public reputation”, it said.The measure….

Videos circulated showing students hugging their teachers and crying as they were turned away from schools.Local media outlets reported that students in at least two schools in Azerbaijan boycotted classes in protest against the restrictions.Imprisoned journalist Polad Aslanov, who is serving a 113-year prison sentence after being convicted of high treason in 2020, launched a hunger strike over the new requirements.“Despite being in prison, I am raising my voice against….

Some have drawn parallels between the developments in Azerbaijan and Turkiye’s “post-modern coup” in 1997 when women wearing headscarves were banned from attending university classes and dismissed from their civil service jobs or were forced to resign.Demonstrators last week gathered outside Azerbaijan’s consulate in Istanbul to protest the restrictions affecting Muslim women, calling on authorities in Baku to reconsider the decision.Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev issued a veiled criticism of Turkiye,….

In a speech at his New Azerbaijan Party congress, Aliyev warned not to “interfere with our lifestyle” without directly mentioning Turkiye.Authorities in Ankara did not officially respond to Aliyev’s comment.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, however, mentioned in his September 23 address at the United Nations General Assembly that Muslim women were facing increasing discrimination.

Protests have broken out as some schools begin preventing students and teachers from attending classes.