The unprecedented ban was implemented on Monday by order of the school's new rector, Kadri Özçaldıran, constituting a first for Boğaziçi since it has long been regarded as a bastion of student freedoms.

Famous for the freedom it extends to its students, unlike most universities in Turkey, Boğaziçi has been on the country's agenda for the past three days. On the first day of the new school year female students were surprised by an implementation at the gate of the campus under which they were refused entry with headscarves. Headscarved students who were not allowed to go on campus gathered in front of the university's main entrance on Monday and Tuesday along with male and non-headscarved female friends and marched on to the campus grounds, passing through the gate as a group.

A non-headscarved student who took part in the protest on Tuesday, Zehra Saygın, said two headscarved students talked to the rector and requested permission at the very least to wear a hat over their headscarves. "They went to talk to the rector. He announced his decision in the afternoon, saying students with headscarves can enter the campus as long as they somehow hide their head covering." One of the students participating in the protest, E.S., said their aim is not to raise tension but merely to attend classes. Although the solution did not please most students since it still carried a restriction on personal freedoms, the tension seemed to be eased, with headscarved students attending classes by camouflaging their headscarves.

In the meantime, in a statement to the Radikal daily yesterday, Rector Özçaldıran brought to mind a recent Constitutional Court decision banning the headscarf at universities. "I am not a jurist. I cannot say whether this decision is right or wrong. However, as a state employee and administrator, I have to show respect for decisions made by the Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights." Stating that Boğaziçi University has always been liberal, Özçaldıran denied that students were refused entry even while wearing hats

"The students can enter the campus wearing hats as long as the headscarf -- defined as a political symbol - is not visible," he added. As for a document security officers wanted headscarved students attempting to enter the campus to sign, which read "I accept all legal responsibility resulting from my entrance to the university while wearing a headscarf," Özçaldıran said: "This is what our attitude and worldview about the issue requires. If you say, 'I know the Constitutional Court and European Court of Human Rights [decisions] but I want to enter the university wearing my headscarf despite all of that,' that is your right as an individual."

Boğaziçi University alumni associations are also voicing displeasure with the situation. The Boğaziçi University Alumni Association (BÜMED) released a statement yesterday about the recent ban at the university. Chairman of the board of directors ?ükrü Ergün said that as BÜMED they have always been in favor of personal freedoms and that everyone should enter wherever they want in whatever clothing they choose. Board members also said they regard the current situation as a reflection of an exceptional period. The Boğaziçi University Reunion Association (BURA) has also been protesting the rector by publishing articles condemning him.

The newly imposed headscarf ban at Boğaziçi University by the incoming rector has since Monday been sparking reactions from students and liberal circles, who had been able to enjoy personal freedoms during the administration of former Rector Ayşe Soysal. Imposing the ban for the first time during the university's English proficiency exams, Özçaldıran is the first rector in the history of Boğaziçi University to refuse headscarved students entry to the campus.

TODAYSZAMAN