Dozens of Protesters Against the Islamization of Schools Arrested in Turkey

Turkish police have arrested dozens of protesters opposing the Islamization of the education system in various cities across the country. According to the French news agency, thousands of secular education supporters marched in different cities of Turkey on Friday, February 24, and clashed with police. The protesters accuse President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the Islamist government of Turkey of 'creeping Islamization' of the country's secular education system. Reports indicate that in protest against the 'Islamization' process, groups of students in cities such as Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Edirne, Antalya, and several other cities in Turkey also refused to attend classes on Friday. Police arrested about 50 people in Izmir and used water cannons to disperse crowds in this city and in Ankara (the capital). The Friday demonstrations were organized by the Alevi minority in Turkey, the largest religious minority in the country, and teacher unions. Alevis, who are a breakaway branch of Shia Islam, believe that the Islamization of subjects and schools in Turkey means teaching Sunni religious principles. In Turkey, only Christian and Jewish students are allowed to opt out of religious classes in schools. The protests by secularist teachers against the Islamization of education in Turkey have a history. In December, police had also arrested dozens of teachers protesting the weakening of secularism principles in the education system by the ruling Justice and Development Party.