Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu stated he had ordered the closure of Turkish schools in 160 countries, arguing that the officials of those schools had sent letters to the leaders of foreign countries in which they complained about the Turkish government. The closure of these schools is a serious step, but the reason for the closure is not based on real evidence.
Who wrote those letters? Who were those letters sent to? What was written in those letters? If those letters were written by Ahmet or Mehmet, is it right to punish Ayşe, Fatma, Hasan and Hüseyin? Do they [the government] have the right to punish all of Turkey and silence the national anthem being sung in 160 countries? Tell me, gentlemen, who gave you this right? Why hasn’t the prime minister, who said he was threatened over the closure of prep schools, made public the names of those who threatened him? What happened to [Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputy] Mehmet Ali Şahin’s “imam of the Supreme Court of Appeals”? Have members of the parallel structure who placed bugging devices in the prime minister’s office been found?
Second Turkish high school for girls opens in Afghanistan
SULTAN FAIZY, HERAT The second high school for girls built by Turks in Afghanistan recently opened its doors following an official ceremony. The school, built in Herat, is a continuation of benevolent Turks’ efforts to invest in Afghanistan’s future through building schools countrywide. The first such school was opened in Kabul. The opening ceremony was […]
International photography contest “Peace at the Frame”
The Journalist and Writers Foundation’s (GYV) Intercultural Dialogue Platform announces its first, annual photography contest. GYV likes to draw attention one more time to the peace, which is need more than ever these days through art of photography .GYV intends to unite everybody who can put the peace at his/her frame with the expertise of the art of photography.
One year after attempted coup, purges have left hundreds of Turkish academics imprisoned
After the attempted coup, college professors have been hit especially hard, thanks to Gülen’s popularity inside Turkish higher education. Turks were encouraged to report Gülen’s followers to the government. Universities have been ordered to establish 7-8 member committees looking into anti-government activities of the faculty and administration.
Systematic Efforts by the Erdoğan Regime to Portray Hizmet as a Violent Organisation
Since its inception fifty years ago, Hizmet people has been consistently peaceful even at times of political persecution such as the1980 coup and 28 February (1997) military memorandum. Despite all efforts of persecution, imprisonment, abductions, ill-treatment, and tortures, the movement has maintained its peaceful resistance and has not resorted to any violent response.
Malaysia detains Turkish academic second time at Turkey’s request
İsmet Özçelik, a Turkish academic with a UNHCR refugee card, was detained again on Thursday in Malaysia amid news that two other Turkish citizens who were believed to have been kidnapped were in fact detained by the authorities.
Opposition, diplomats slam gov’t attempt to shut down Turkish schools
The government’s attempts to shut down Turkish schools abroad which are affiliated with the Hizmet movement, inspired by the teachings of Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, have been severely criticized by opposition members and diplomats.
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