President Beji Caid Essebsi triggered a debate when he declared, on August 13, that the Islamic veil should be banned in primary schools. The announcement was made on the occasion of the celebration of Tunisia’s national women’s day. According to Essebsi the practice of having children wear veils is “contrary to the provisions of the law on the rights of children.” The proposed measure, although Esebssi did not explain how it would be implemented, has aggravated the already strained relations between Islamists and seculars in Tunisia. Othman Bettikh, minister of religious affairs, said that banning the veil is not within his prerogatives and that the issue is within the mandate of the ministry of education. Positions among civil society organisations varied. Hayet Jazzar, a lawyer and women rights activist at the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women (ATFD) considered that according to the law, Essebsi’s veil ban would apply to girls aged 13 and below. A veil ban was first enacted under former president Bourguiba in 1981; and was then considered a sectarian dress-style. Others consider that while most scholars agree that the veil in Islam is not required before puberty, and that the practice of veiled children is very marginal, Essebsi did not really need to add to the troubles of Tunisia, which is facing far more pressing economic and security challenges at present.
Links for more information:
http://nawaat.org/portail/2015/08/21/interdire-le-voile-dans-les-ecoles-le-sensationnel-de-bce
Battikh n’est pas opposé à l’interdiction du hijab à l’école
http://www.lapressenews.tn/article/afturd-les-associations-feminines-et-organisations-ont-sauve-la-tunisie
http://www.huffpostarabi.com/2015/08/20/story_n_8014718.html
