Millions protest at religious dress ban

Mass protests were held throughout Turkey last Sunday against the ban on religious dress in universities and other public places. Organisers claimed two to three million people took part.

In Istanbul protesters linked hands to form a "peace chain" that ran several miles through the capital. The majority of those taking part were women wearing Islamic headscarfs, which prompted deputy prime minster Bulent Ecevit to claim the protest was an "uprising by people hiding behind young girls".

Many of the protesters chanted slogans against the government and carried placards, calling for "Education without religious prejudice".

The government declared the protests illegal. There were 267 arrests for "traffic violations", but in general the protest was peaceful. A dean from the medical faculty at the Hundred Year University in Van was reported to have lost his job for joining demonstrators.

The constitutional ban on religious dress in universities, which includes the wearing of headscarves by women and beards by men, is the focus of a bitter dispute between the secular and Islamic communities.

The ban is one of the strict laws introduced over 70 years ago to protect the secular state. Until this year they were rarely enforced, but growing support for the Islamic movement led to universities reintroducing the ban, backed by the military.

The demonstrations put pressure on prime minister Messut Yilmaz to find a compromise before elections early next year.