US law professor: Erdoğan’s talk of Gülen extradition ‘foolishness’

Jim Harrington, a US human rights attorney and University of Texas professor
Jim Harrington, a US human rights attorney and University of Texas professor


Date posted: September 7, 2014

Jim Harrington, a US human rights attorney and University of Texas professor, has said that any talk of asking the United States to extradite Turkish-Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen to Turkey is “foolish, absurd and self-serving.”

Harrington is author of “Wrestling with Free Speech, Religious Freedom and Democracy in Turkey: The Political Trials and Times Fethullah Gülen.”

Turkish media reports claimed last week that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan would seek the extradition of Gülen when he meets with US President Barack Obama at the NATO summit that took place last Friday.

Erdoğan, inaugurated last month, has vowed to press on with his battle against Gülen and his supporters, whom he accuses of using influence within the judiciary, police and state bureaucracy to plot against him in his final year as prime minister.

On his plane traveling to Wales for the summit, Erdoğan told reporters the supporters of the “parallel structure” within the state apparatus would be among subjects he would discuss with Obama while there. “Parallel structure” is the expression Erdoğan uses to describe the faith-based Hizmet movement inspired by Gülen.

“Deport him or give him to us,” the pro-government Yeni Şafak daily and other newspapers quoted Erdoğan as saying of Gülen. “Let him come and live in his own country if he says he hasn’t committed a crime.”

According to Harrington, the United States would never honor such a request because, when the George W. Bush administration tried to do it before, a federal court in Pennsylvania blocked the administration and the court reaffirmed the right of Gülen to remain in the United States. The federal court also chastised the administration for attempting such an ill-advised effort, he said.

“Now, the current administration is much less friendly with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan than it was six years ago in 2008. I know from my own talks with officials in the Obama administration and Congress that they would brush off such a request by Erdoğan as political huffing and puffing,” Harrington told Today’s Zaman.

He said Erdoğan obviously does not understand how constitutional protections of free speech and religious freedom function in the United States — or in any democracy. “If he does understand, then he has a callous disregard for human rights.”

“Not only is there no chance the administration would not reject such a foolhardy request, but, even if it didn’t, the courts again would intervene to prevent it. And the American and European human rights communities would strongly oppose this,” the professor said in further remarks.

Harrington also suggested that “Erdoğan would be better advised to respect free speech rights and end his campaign of bullying anyone and everyone who disagrees with him.”

Gülen is in self-imposed exile in the US, although there is no legal hurdle preventing him from returning to Turkey. He has pioneered many educational activities around the world.

Source: Today's Zaman , September 7, 2014


Related News

Politically motivated police raid of kindergarten in west Turkey

The witch hunt against the opponents of the government continues and is growing. In another instance of a government-orchestrated operation targeting the faith-based Gülen movement, popularly known as the Hizmet movement, the police along with inspectors conducted raids around 6 am on Tuesday at dozens of institutions owned by the Yamanlar Educational Institutions, which was established by volunteers of the movement in the western province of İzmir.

[Part 3] Gülen says gov’t cut back on rights and freedoms in Turkey

Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who has inspired the popular civic and social movement called Hizmet, has said he is concerned with the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government’s moves seen over the last couple of years to cut back on fundamental rights and freedoms in Turkey.

Turkey’s Gulen crackdown hits Canada

Efforts in Canada by Turkish authorities and supporters of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have made life miserable for Gulen followers here, many say. They have been made unwelcome in mosques and restaurants frequented by Turkish-Canadians, and they have been cursed and protested against by fellow citizens.

Daily publishes evidence of ‘color lists’ used to recruit public sector employees

The Taraf daily published a document on Wednesday in supports of its allegations that the government recruits public sector employees using “color lists” to avoid people affiliated with groups such as the Hizmet movement.

Money trail in corruption case

The fact that the government practically stalled the investigation with a major reshuffle of the judiciary, police, watchdog agencies that track money, and finance and banking activities, while pushing emergency laws through Parliament to prevent further investigations and leaks, casts a shadow on how far the Erdoğan government had gone in these dirty deals.

A Year After Hurricane Sandy: Climate Change & Disaster Management

The Peace Islands Institute (PII) held a discussion panel on October 28, titled “A Year After Hurricane Sandy: Climate Change and Disaster Management” in order to raise awareness on climate change and disaster management, to highlight disaster management planning, to explore effective ways to respond to natural disasters during and after emergency and to handle the emergency situations.

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

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

In Case You Missed It

Gov’t discriminates against Hizmet-affiliated private schools

Why does the West love the Gülen movement so much?

Nigerian youths can excel in Olympiads

Turkey arrests Fethullah Gulen’s barber from 26 years ago

Opposition up in arms over Erdoğan’s badmouthing of Turkish schools abroad during visit to Ethiopia

After The Coup Attempt, A Crackdown In Turkey

Votes of religious orders and communities [in Turkey]

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News