Tensions with teachers, pupils and Turkiye: Inside Azerbaijan’s hijab row

For Gulshan Aliyeva, a teacher, the debate over the hijab in Azerbaijan’s public schools has become a personal struggle that threatens her career and her daughter’s education.This week, the English teacher with 23 years of experience, went to school wearing her headscarf but was denied entry. Her daughter was also prevented from entering the high school in Baku, she told Al Jazeera.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Azerbaijan school pupils protest over reported hijab restrictionslist 2 of 3Azerbaijan’s school hijab ban: What’s behind it, and what’s next?list 3 of 3Azerbaijan’s hijab restrictions spark school protests and arrestsend of list“I want to fulfil my responsibilities, educate students and continue my career without my religious beliefs becoming an obstacle to my employment,” she said.Aliyeva argued that Azerbaijan’s Labour Code, specifically Article 16, prohibits discrimination in employment in the country.Last month, new rules stopped short of explicitly singling out the hijab but banned pupils from wearing clothes that violate the principle of secularism in education.Protests have erupted over the issue in a country where more than 90 percent are Muslim.Aliye...