WHO HAS THE RIGHT TO USE THE VEIL? SECULARISM AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN SAHIN V. TURKEY

The paper analyses the decision Sahin v. Turkey of the European Court of Human Rights. In Sahin, the court decided that the headscarf's prohibition in universities does not violate women's right of freedom of religion. Unlike the ECHR, the paper asserts that the secular and the equality principles were undestood in a partenalistc and arbitrary sense. Defends a type of toleration based on mutual recognition and mutual acceptance of divergent worldviews. This kind of tolerance allows religion and democracy to coexist in a pluralistic environment and conciliates multiculturalism and equality. For this purpose, I use the Orhan Pamuk's Snow to make the demand that we take seriously the hardship and suffering of others more explicit and radical, as well as the personal responsibility of each one of us about the ethical choices.