Parliament Unable to Convene: Headscarf Debate in UBP Group Meeting

The General Assembly was scheduled to meet yesterday but was postponed due to insufficient attendance. According to parliamentary procedure, a minimum of 26 deputies must be present to begin a session. Since this number could not be met during the roll call, the meeting was rescheduled for today.

However, the session planned for 10:30 AM today still had not started by 3:00 PM, as the UBP group meeting ran long, preventing the General Assembly from even attempting to convene.

Attention is now focused on the government's internal disagreements.

During the UBP Group meeting, discussions focused on changes to the Secondary Education Disciplinary Regulation, often referred to in the public as the headscarf regulation. There are reportedly differences of opinion within the party, with some members opposing the proposed changes.

Hasan Taçoy: "Headscarf Debate is Not Religious, It is Political"

UBP Deputy Hasan Taçoy, in a program on TV2020, stated that the debate over headscarves in schools has "no religious dimension" and is "entirely political." He added that the matter should not be discussed in the Party Assembly.

İzlem Gürçağ Altuğra: "Headscarves Cannot Be Accepted in Schools; The Regulation is Not Open for Discussion"

Similarly, UBP Deputy and former Minister of Health İzlem Gürçağ Altuğra emphasized in an interview with Kıbrıs Türk TV that the disciplinary regulation is "clear and not open to interpretation." She also stressed that the Turkish Cypriot people have been raised in accordance with Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's principles, and that there would be no compromise on these values.

It remains uncertain when the General Assembly will be able to convene.