Turkey’s Sixth Report on its Compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

Abstract

We, the undersigned civil society organizations1, have prepared this report in the belief that Turkey’s long-standing prohibitions on the headscarf, which have intensified since the 1997 “postmodern military coup,”2 are discriminative and directly violate the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Our report shows the extent and the impact of the headscarf ban in barring women from admission to educational institutions, employment and participation in political life3. The report best describes how these restrictions legitimize discrimination, and how the imposition of the ban by the state has turned into violence, patriarchal oppression, and discrimination not only by men against women, but also by women against women with a headscarf. The articles of CEDAW that are violated by the discrimination of women because of whether their hair is covered are expressed in this report. Recent surveys, case studies and reports of some international organizations on the issue have been used to argue the statements in advance.