CSOs continue to condemn hate speech against Hizmet movement


Date posted: January 31, 2014

İSTANBUL

More civil society organizations from various parts of Turkey held press conferences on Friday to slam hate speech used by the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government against the Hizmet movement, saying that top government officials should refrain from using hateful rhetoric.

Dozens of CSOs across Turkey have been holding press conferences or releasing press releases to condemn an ongoing defamation campaign being conducted against the Hizmet movement inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.

In Düzce province, five CSOs held a joint press conference on Friday, calling on top government officials to keep from making defamatory remarks that could polarize the public. Speaking on behalf of the CSOs, President of Düzce Industrialists and Businessmen’s Union (DÜSİAD) Eyüp Çakır said that they are following the rising tension in the country, the fluctuations in currency markets and the recent economical developments with concern.

He pinpointed defamatory expressions being used against the Hizmet movement, such as “parallel state,” “gang,” “virus,” “secret organization” and even “Hashashin” — a shadowy historical group that carried out politically motivated assassinations during the time of the Seljuk Empire. Çakır said that any person using hateful language should stop immediately. He added that the democratic steps taken by the government after a Sept. 12, 2010 public referendum held on its constitutional amendment package should not be reversed.

Referencing the government’s repeated argument that there is a “parallel state” within Turkey, Çakır said people are being forced to take sides in this argument and that if there really is a parallel structure within the Turkish state, it should be exposed and necessary measures should be taken. Indicating that the government has to back up its argument with concrete evidence and documents, Çakır said that the Hizmet movement, which is made of volunteers serving their nation without any financial expectations, doesn’t deserve such harsh, defamatory statements.

Speaking with reporters on Thursday evening, the Isparta-based Association of Iranian Industrialists and Businessmen’s (ISİAD) president, Özcan Pınarcı, commented on the hate speech directed at Hizmet movement followers by government officials after a corruption scandal erupted in December of 2013. He echoed Çakır, listing the defamatory phrases being thrown at the Anatolian people who merely wish to serve their nation.

Pınarcı said his organization cannot believe the harsh expressions and accusations being used against Gülen, who he sees as one of the most distinguished people to have risen from Turkey and someone who has no other intention except to serve his nation.

Another five CSOs gathered in the Manavgat district of Antalya province on Thursday to support the Hizmet movement. Speaking on behalf of the CSOs, the Manavgat Entrepreneurial Businessmen’s Association (MAGİAD) President Mehmet Kaba said government officials should stop their hate speech, should stop hurting the public conscience and should adopt more inclusive rhetoric.

Source: Todays Zaman , January 31, 2014

Tags: | | | |


Related News

The system is the root cause of corruption

We have the perfect recipe for all kinds of corruption. The media has been silenced. It does not work as a watchdog, inspecting the government’s financial dealings. Parliament cannot inspect the government’s financial transactions. The Court of Accounts (Sayıştay) cannot inspect the government’s expenses. There are no internal mechanisms within the ruling party to make sure its leaders are accountable; there is only an infallible leader figure, and whatever he does, the party endorses it.

Kurds, Turkey and growing with Öcalan’s help?

As far as the Kurds living in other countries are concerned, as Fethullah Gülen underscored in his Rudaw newspaper interview, Turkey should not only be interested in the well-being of Turks’ ethnic brothers in other countries but also Kurds’ and other ethnically non-Turkish citizens’ brothers and relatives all over the world. Thus, instead of seeing an autonomous Kurdish region in northern Syria as a threat, we must be happy that our Kurdish relatives on the other side of the border will hopefully have better living standards and human rights.

Erdoğan’s Fight against the Gülen Movement & The Demise of Turkish State Rationality

In a nutshell, Erdoğan’s divisive political rhetoric and his attempts to foster anti-Gülenist sentiments have perfectly served his own political interests within the country, but they have not served the country’s interests in the international arena, as they raise serious doubts about the credibility and rationality of the state as embodied in Erdoğan’s personality.

Turks Fleeing a Crackdown Find Haven in Albania

Dozens of Turks at risk at home from their affiliation with the man accused of mounting a failed coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have found haven in Albania. But ‘brotherly’ ties between Ankara and Tirana keep them on their toes.

Turkey’s picture on freedom of the press bleak on WPFD

FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK Journalists who have taken the opportunity to reflect on the thorny issue of freedom of the press in Turkey on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day (WPFD), which is marked every May 3, have drawn a bleak picture, speaking about the various problems that restrict freedom of the press in the […]

Why did Turkey seize Bank Asya?

In September 2014, in an address to the Turkish Industry and Business Association, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the following statement: “No effort is underway to cause the bankruptcy of a bank. That bank is already bankrupt. They are carrying water by hand to keep it afloat.”

Latest News

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

University refuses admission to woman jailed over Gülen links

In Case You Missed It

CHP applies to Constitutional Court for annulment of dershane law

Erdogan advisor likens Turkey purge to Aborigine, Native American, Armenian cases

Fethullah Gulen: Bridge Between Islam And The West

ISPO becomes Turkish schools’ success story in Indonesia

A serious question for a respected newspaper

Gülen urges Hizmet members to defend prep schools in civilized way

Erdoğan admits gov’t capitalized on coup attempt to pursue Gülen movement

Copyright 2022 Hizmet News