Protests Over Hijab Ban in Schools Spread in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan's government's insistence on banning hijab in schools has led to spreading protests and strikes by students and teaching staff at several schools.

The insistence of the government of the Republic of Azerbaijan on banning the hijab in the schools of this country has led to the spread of protests and strikes by students and teaching staff of a number of schools.

According to Ambassador Arjan, quoted by Qafqaz Azad website (Oasi Media), students of a number of schools in the Republic of Azerbaijan refused to attend classes in protest against the restrictions imposed on veiled students.

The Baku City Education Department has announced that it has begun monitoring the implementation of the new requirements in public schools.

These measures have been criticized by students and parents; They say that these regulations limit the right of veiled girls to study. According to the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the government guarantees the right to free and compulsory public secondary education.

Closure of 2 schools and dismissal of a veiled teacher

According to Maidan TV reports and videos published on social networks, students of school No. 69 in Baku and secondary school B. Shiriyev in Molauba village, located in Masali county, refused to attend classes and demanded that their veiled classmates be allowed to return to school.

In a separate incident, according to Maidan TV, a veiled teacher at Richard Zorge Secondary School No. 90 in Baku has been fired. The pictures published by this media show crying students hugging their teacher.

The hunger strike of the imprisoned journalist in support of the hijab

Polad Aslanov, a jailed journalist, has also started a hunger strike in protest against the change in school uniform regulations, which was approved by the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan on September 21.

The jailed director of "Khobarman" news site announced that he started a hunger strike on Thursday in protest against these restrictions.

His wife, Golmira Aslanova, announced the decision in a Facebook post, saying that Aslanov is being held in Penitentiary No. 15.

Aslanov said that the goal of the hunger strike is to draw public attention to the exclusion of veiled students from attending schools and the restrictions on teachers' clothing. He also said that his own child's right to education was also limited.

He said: "I declare to defend the rights of my child and all hijab students whose right to education is limited. "Also, I have started a hunger strike to defend the rights of all veiled female teachers who are forced to choose between studying and wearing the veil."