Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro de la Prensa~Baszn Özeti
Calling for 'Courageous' Policy Change,
Iraq Urges U.S. to Build New Relations
The As.wcialed Press daring step -byreàsonable and realistic
BAGHDAD - In a change from its politicians" to reassess American
usual anti-American rhetoric, Iraq on policy toward the Baghdad regime
Sunday urged the United States to and "eventually call for direct talks
"coùrageously" change its policies with the government of Iraq so as to
and normalize relations with Baghdad. normalize relations. ' ,
An editorial in the state-run Bagh- The editorial urged the United
dad Observer said that such a move by .States to' 'courageously reshuffle" it!;
President Bill Clinton and his main ,policy "for a more realistic one that
ally, Prime Minister Tony Blair of serves America's legitimate interests
Britain, would be in their political and as weIl as the cause of peace, security
economic interests. and stability in this region. "
Britain and the 'United States have .. , Inan interview published Sunday in
been the main supporters of maintain- the weekly Al Musawir Al Arabi, the
ing United Nations trade sanctions on Iraqi deputy foreign minister, Riad
Iraq. The sanctions, which limitexports Qaissi, said Iraq-American talks were
of oil, w~re designed to punish Saddam likely. "Iraq does not mind a dialogue
Hussein for his 1990 invasion of with Washington - it calls for it,"
Kuwait, which set off the Gulf War. Mr. Qaissi was quoted as saying.
The Iraqi editorial called for "a The Iraqi statements came amid
Over Head-ScarfBan
Ankara Survives Vote
By Stephen Kinzer
New York Times Service
ISTANBUL - A bright-eyed medical
student hardly seems the sort to touch
off a national crisis, but Tutoy Erdogan
and her friends are at the heart of an
intense new conflict between secularism
and conservative Islam in Turkey.
Many Turks thought this conflict was
resolved last year when the Islamicoriented
government of Necmettin
Erbakanwas forced out of power. Inthe
last few weeks, however, the conflict
has eruptéd anew, complete with sharp
warnings from top military commanders,
dire predictions by politicians, mass
demonstrations and pledges of undying
defiance from devout Muslims.
[Although the conflict, over a ban on
the wearing of traditional Islamic head
carves, had appeared to threaten the
government of Prime Minister Mesut
Yilmaz, it defeated a parliamentary
challenge Tuesday, Reuters reported
from Ankara. The National Assembly
voted, 266 to 213, to reject a motion to
censure Education Minister Hikmet
Ulugbay over the ban.]
The main battleground in this latest
confrontation is the campus of Istanbul
University. That is where Miss Erdogan,
23, attended medical school until two
months ago, when she was turned away for
wearing the traditional Islamic head scarf.
Miss Erdogan's troubles began when
the government, evidently acting at the
behest of military commanders, issued a
decree in January demanding that school
administrators strictly ènforce the secular
dress code. The code, which dates
from 1925, bans clothing that is deemed
religious. It was flfSt imposed by
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder and
first president of the Turkish Republic, as
part of his revolutionary restructuring of
a society that had been ruled for centurie!!
38
by a highly traditional theocracy.
When Miss Erdogan arrived to take a
surgery examination at the end of January,
she was turned away because she
. was wearing a head scarf. She was later
forbidden to take other exams, and since
the new term began last month she and
scores of her classmates have been prevented
from attending classes.
The decree was quickly embraced by
the rector of Istanbul University, Kemal
Alemdaroglu, who since taking office in
December has shown himself to be an
aggressive defender of secular principles.
He ordered an absolute ban on
head scarves, triggering a wave of angry
demonstrations at which thousands of
conservative Muslim students were
joined by others who denounced the
decree as undemocratic.
Mr. Alemdaroglu, faced with an incipient
uprising, agreed to postpone the
ban on head scarves until September. He
insisted, however, that it be enforced at
the medical school, arguing that since
most doctors in Turkey work at state
hospitals where head scarves are banned
female medical students should accus~
tom themselves to going bareheaded.
Those who oppose the Muslim students
accuse them of using the scarves
and the argument of religious freedom
to disguise larger motives - ultimately
sUPJ)?rtfor an Islami~ th~ocra~y. '
Miss Erdogan demed m an mterview
that her scarf has political meaning.
"We love God, we read our Koran,
we believe in our religion, and we want
. to apply this religion in our lives, " Miss
Erdog~ said. "What has happened in
. the last few weeks makes me very'
angry."
"It's bad to become a fanatic," she
added, "but they are pushing us toward
fanaticism. "
Secularists, however; are convinced
that even if young women like Miss
wha~appe~ed to be a change in fraq 's
dealln~s with UN weapons inspectors.
following the Feb. 23 agreement negotiated
by the UN secretary-general
Kofi Annan. Under the terms of th~
deal, Iraq agreed to open eight of Mr.
~addam's palace compounds to UN
In~pectors and to improve cooperation
wIth UN weapons teams.
Last week, for the first time, Iraq
allowed a UN team into the Defense
Ministry. And next weekend, the chief
UN arms inspector, Richard Butler is
~ue in .Baghdad to begin the pal~ce
inspectIOns.
9n Sunday, UN inspection teams
paId unannounced visits to eight sites
the official Iraqi News Agency re~
p?~ed. I~ ad~ition., a UN team specIalized
In bIOlogical and chemical
weapons as well as missiles visited a
~~ate-run universit~. The inspections
were conducted with full cooperation
from the Iraqi side," the agency said.
Slaton R. Winter(The New York Times .
Istanbul University students in Is.
lamic garb walking on campus in
front of a statue of Ataturk, who
first imposed the secular dress code.