Turkish prime minister unveils major package of liberalising reforms

Turkey's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, unveiled the first big package of liberalising reforms in years yesterday, making overtures to the large Kurdish minority and proposing that headscarved women be allowed to sit in parliament and work as civil servants for the first time in the history of the Turkish republic.

The proposals, which have been repeatedly delayed due to their potentially incendiary impact, followed a summer of the most persistent anti-government protests in Mr Erdogan’s 11 years in power.

At a press conference in Ankara, where journalists were not allowed to ask questions, Mr Erdogan announced that the headscarf ban would be lifted for women in public offices except for those that require uniforms such as the military, police and the courts.

The ban has long been one of Turkey’s most contentious laws and many analysts see the reform as an important step towards more democratic rights.

The measures partly returned Mr Erdogan to the reformist zeal of his early years in power, after months of being accused of being an authoritarian because of his draconian, violent response to weeks of street protests in June. However, critics said the proposals did not go nearly far enough. – (Guardian service)