Newsroom
For nearly a month, Turkish Cypriot teachers have been protesting against the introduction of headscarves in secondary schools, standing in defense of secular education. The demonstrations began after a new disciplinary regulation came into effect, allowing high school students to wear clothing linked to their religious beliefs.
According to Kathimerini's Apostolos Kouroupakis, Turkish Cypriot education unions and civil society organizations have joined the protests, which have sparked widespread concern across the community and political landscape in the occupied areas of Cyprus.
Speaking to K, Selma Eilem, president of the Turkish Cypriot Secondary Education Teachers’ Union (KTOEÖS), explained why the headscarf issue has raised alarm and how it ties into a broader fear of creeping political Islam.
“The imposition we’ve been seeing for years is aimed at social conditioning, and it’s not just limited to education,” she said. “What’s being forced on us through so-called cooperation protocols, in the political, social, cultural, and economic spheres, is a direct attack on the identity, language, religion, lifestyle, and self-determination of the Turkish Cypriots. The population influx and mass granting of citizenships are part of the same agenda.”
Eilem warned of the real danger of political Islam infiltrating Turkish Cypriot society. “Our community is democratic, tolerant, and secular. We’ve coexisted peacefully for decades with people of different faiths, languages, and ethnic backgrounds. This headscarf issue is being used as a political tool to disrupt that harmony, to divide society, and to stir up conflict for political gain. That’s what the push for political Islam is really about.”
She added that the overwhelming public backlash shows how out of step the policy is with community values. “Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets to say loud and clear: this imposition is unacceptable.”
Eilem herself has faced threats after telling the Turkish ambassador to “go home.” She described the backlash and the broader context:
“It’s obvious this is a strategic move by the AKP. They want to create a political distraction here to deflect from what’s happening in Turkey and to gain leverage. The picture is clear: the AKP’s representative in Cyprus, Emre Kaya, showed up at a secondary school in a black van to pressure our students. The reappointed Turkish ambassador met with our president and prime minister to push for changes to the disciplinary statute. He’s the same person who meddled in the 2020 presidential election. That’s why I told him to go home.”
Since then, Eilem has received death threats and been targeted by pro-government Turkish media. “There have been threats against me personally and against our entire society,” she said. “Insults, fake news, and smear campaigns from pro-government outlets in Turkey are all part of this orchestrated political pressure.”
