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Kremlin has no joint stance on wearing hijabs in Russian schools

Peskov noted that Russia is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country, which is also a secular state under the Constitution

MOSCOW, March 31. /TASS/. The Kremlin doesn’t not have a unified position on wearing Islamic headscarves in Russian schools, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday.

Earlier in the day, the parliament in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Chechnya passed amendments to the local law allowing students to wear clothes or symbolics in line with their faith, including hijabs.

"The Kremlin doesn’t have any joint stance in this case," Peskov told reporters. He noted that this issue has been discussed in many countries and there is no talk about a "standard approach" to this issue. "These issues are regulated in various countries in different ways," Peskov added.

Peskov noted that Russia is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country, which is also a secular state under the Constitution. The issue on wearing hijabs at schools should be decided at the federal level, or it may be within the competence of regional authorities.

In January, Russian Education Minister Olga Vasilyeva said Islamic headscarves are out of place in Russian schools. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov accused the minister of imposing her own opinion on the society. "The theme of headscarves is being injected so as to distract society’s attention from real problems in schools," he added.

The Chechen parliament noted that the amendments to the education law in the republic do not run counter to the federal law. Schools should take into consideration the rights of students to wear clothes or symbolics in line with their traditions and faith provided that "this does not harm their health or violate the rights and freedoms of other people," the chairman of Chechen parliament’s committee for education, science and culture, Bekhan Hazbulatov, said.