Islamic headscarf

·         On February 2, 2008 thousands of Turks rallied in Ankara to protest against a government plan to allow women to wear the Islamic headscarf in Turkish universities.

·         The protestors fear such a move would usher in a stricter form of Islam in Turkey, which is a secular state.

·         Turkey's parliament is expected to approve a constitutional amendment to ease the ban next week.

·         The ban on the headscarf in higher education was imposed in the 1980s, and has been enforced for the past decade.

·         A huge crowd gathered at the mausoleum of Ataturk - the man who founded Turkey as a modern, secular republic.

·         Fearing the gains of his revolution are in danger, the protestors came waving Ataturk's image on banners and carrying the national flag.

·         The government - which is led by devout Muslims - is pushing a reform that would allow women to wear the religious headscarf to university.

·         The scarf has been banned outright in private and state universities for almost two decades.

·         The government argues the ban deprives thousands of women of a higher education.

·         But Turkey's powerful, secular establishment sees the headscarf as a symbol of political Islam - a threat to their secular way of life, and to the political system.

·         Those opposed to the reform include the military, Turkey's judges and university rectors.

·         They fear it is just the first step to allowing religious symbols into all aspects of public life.

·         The constitutional amendment is likely to be passed by parliament, where the government has the support of the main nationalist party.

·         But such is the controversy that the changes are almost certain to be contested in the constitutional court.