Why worry about headscarf issue in Turkey?

Does anyone recall the news last month of the government decree changing the regulation on the dress code in public schools, allowing girls as young as 10 years old to attend classes wearing headscarves?

It is already history. In a country like ours with such a huge agenda, where even as journalists we have trouble keeping pace with developments, this should not be so surprising.

Indeed, it has become the government’s trick to use Turkey’s loaded agenda to introduce controversial changes in order to avoid any substantial debate.

But this is an issue worth keeping on the agenda, especially at a time when we are terrified to see people voluntarily joining Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a barbaric organization that in my eyes does not in any way approach any concept related to Islam.

The headscarf issue is a very complex one, especially in a conservative country like Turkey.

Years ago, a taxi driver told me that his daughter, who lived in a small village, had decided to cover her head. “Her husband is a military official. He leaves for duties that take him away from home for weeks. She thought she would be safer this way, to protect her honor,” he said. She was not forced to it by her husband; it was her own decision.

According to this line of thinking, women who are not wearing a headscarf are potentially more open to sexual assault. It is not so much about Islam dictating that it must be worn, but rather about how it is perceived by society.

So, if a woman in her 20’s can think like that, we can assume that there are still many conservative fathers in Turkey who won’t let their daughters leave the house unless their head is covered. Indeed, this is a reality in Turkey, but the...