| CA-NEWS (UZ) - The Uzbek authorities have outlawed white hats, saying that Uzbeks should wear national hats, not the ones worn in Arab countries, reported Uznews.net. Andijan residents said that in mid-March police officers had warned traders at mosques and markets against selling white hats. "We were approached by police officers and officially told not to sell white hats," a local market trader said. However, they can sell hats of any other colour - black, blue, green and grey. People are puzzled about this ban and suggest all kinds of explanations. Some say that this is because members of the Hizb-ut Tahrir Islamic Party and Akromiya movement (that follows the teachings of Andijan's religious leader Akrom Yuldashev who was sentenced in 1999) wear white hats. People point to the absurdity of the ban on white hats because white is the colour of hajj pilgrims who start wearing white clothes after the pilgrimage and bring white hats as presents from Mecca. The Muftiat (Directorate) of Uzbekistan's Muslims confirmed to Uznews.net that police had banned the sales of white hats. Its spokesman said that this was done because white hats were worn in Arab countries, so they were alien to Uzbekistan. "Arabs wear white hats, but we wear our own national hats that differ from region to region," he said. "Why should Uzbeks be influenced by Arabs?" However, he said that only the sales of hats had been banned so far, while people were still allowed to wear them in public.
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