Talking headscarves in Turkey

Over the years, the issue of the headscarf slowly became more sensitive, even as the practice of wearing it got more widespread, with even urban women opting to wear it. The type of scarf also changed. It became more in the style favoured by Malaysian women, which is tied down and kept firmly in place, as Professor Senesen, an economist at the Istanbul University, explained.

But why did headscarves in Turkey become such an important political issue. Istanbul8217;s feminists have an explanation. The seventies saw a civil war-like situation between Turkey8217;s Left and Right factions. The situation was brought under some control after the 1980 military coup. Democracy was restored after three years. In the mid-1980s, Islamist parties began gaining popularity, partly as a reaction to the strong communist movement in Turkey. The military decided to support the Islamists, given its instinctive dislike for communism 8212; for the Turkish military the USSR/Russia has always been a traditional enemy. Influenced by Cold War sentiments, the US too put its weight behind the Islamist/ right-wing parties against the left. Suddenly there was great talk of 8216;spiritual values8217;, and these values were by no means religion-neutral.

Before the eighties, there was a very significant divide between the rural and urban spheres. Cosmopolitan Turkey readily accepted social and cultural reforms amidst a rapidly growing economy. The country8217;s per capita income today stands at nearly 5,000. There was now serious talk of joining the European Union. However, great economic growth was coupled with greater uncertainty for many. Income disparities became more pronounced. The lifestyles and incomes of the elite could compare favourably with the best that Europe had to offer, and there was a general flouting of all the tenets of Islam.

These developments did not make for great unity at home. The high growth rate also led to unprecedented urban migration. The assimilation of migrants in urban society was always a problem and remains one to this day. Migrants, even second- and third-generation migrants, face a subtle social stigma. Young women in such communities have increasingly taken to wearing the headscarf, partly in protest against this exclusion. By opting for the headscarf, they have apparently chosen their class identity over their gender identity. It is a move that has been applauded by their men. It is claimed that women had done this of their own volition. Wearing the scarf has been interpreted as a rejection of western values and crass consumerism and a demonstration of a simple faith in Islam.

While the headscarf has become a symbol of retaliation or oppression 8212; depending on how one chooses to see it 8212; it is perhaps not as retrogressive in Turkey as it is being made out to be. The general educational standards of women are improving all the time and nobody, not even those among the conservatives, objects to this. The laws with respect to domestic violence are very good, arranged marriages are becoming less common and polygamy is illegal. Research shows that only a maximum of 10 per cent of men are polygamous Indian surveys indicate similar results.

There is nothing unique about the contestation over headscarves in Turkey. In most modernising societies, women8217;s garb has been a defining issue. We come across it constantly in India. It8217;s difficult to imagine this today, but the India of the thirties and forties was witness to several debates of this kind. For instance, there was a very interesting and animated debate in Marathi magazines on whether women should be wearing the traditional, nine-yard, divided sari nauwari or the newer, five-yard version!

The writer is head of the department of economics, University of Pune