Turkish education minister emphasizes 'family values' and questions universal human rights

Turkey's new national education minister, Yusuf Tekin, who raised eyebrows by suggesting the possibility of opening girls-only schools, has again come under the spotlight. This time, he commented during a television interview targeting the LGBTI+ community.

Tekin stressed the need to revisit and discuss universal human rights texts. "If you ask me, we need to look at this problem by discussing the basic human rights texts that we claim to be universal," he noted. His comments alluded to debates around LGBTI+ rights, often based on these human rights documents. Tekin suggested that there may be a need to re-evaluate and amend these texts in light of new developments.

Focusing on traditional values, Tekin announced that the Ministry has introduced a new "Family in Turkish Society" course into the curriculum. This course is also available as an elective. He said, "Whatever the values that make us who we are, we want to pass them on to future generations. These are the issues we are prioritizing in our new curriculum studies."

The Minister's remarks have attracted attention, with many anticipating further discussion and possible reactions from various sectors of society.