TURKEY’S REST DAY

Greymouth Evening Star, 25 May 1935, Page 14

TURKEY’S REST DAY

('IIANGE MAY I’.E MALE. It is understood by the Istanbul correspondent of ihc London "Obsorv> r" that a bill is about to be laid before the. Great National As.-emnly ; making Sunday, and not Friday, Turj key's compulsory day of rest. The ; ri aeons of this reform tire purely <•< •>- nomic. In February. 192 1, Turkey, the fil'd atm ng .Mus-ulimn countries, inirodimci' a eompnlsoi y rest day and Friday war chosen. || was litcn a social reform, and the choice fell on Fri lay mainly because Mtu ■l'.lmtnis devoie more lime to their prayr t'j; on ‘hat day than on any other. All the foreign tidmit’istrations and banks accordingly

I had to close lheir offices on Fridays ittml open them on Sundays, some the I whole day through and others until I noon. | The choice of J'riday soon, however, : proved to be unfortuntitc. Financial . traiisactions suffered, since the’ hanks : were unable to communicate with the I < iccidimtal markets, while owing to the closing of the European Stock Exchanges on Sunday, they were unable to work normally on that day, ami only for half a day on Saturdays. They thus lost nearly three days every Week'. • | The reform has been discussed in 1 [the Press for a number of years. Al one time it was said that in order to spare religious susceptibilities, the reform would merely consist in < hanging the name of Sunday into that of Friday, > o that Frid'iy might always r< main the oflicial day of rest.