Opposition deputy seeks answers on gov’t ban on Kimse Yok Mu

People gather in front of the Gaziantep branch of Kimse Yok Mu to get aid packages delivered by the charity organization on the first day of Eid al-Adha. (Photo: Cihan)
People gather in front of the Gaziantep branch of Kimse Yok Mu to get aid packages delivered by the charity organization on the first day of Eid al-Adha. (Photo: Cihan)


Date posted: October 6, 2014

A lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has directed questions at Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on why the government banned charity group Kimse Yok Mu from collecting donations.

In a formal parliamentary question, CHP Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanrıkulu asked Davutoğlu to explain the legal grounds for the government decision dated Sept. 22 to rescind Kimse Yok Mu’s permission to collect charitable donations.

He asked the prime minister to respond to claims that Kimse Yok Mu was also subject to non-routine inspections over the past one year, even though the law on foundations stipulate that inspections of such organizations are done once in every two years. “How many times over the past one year has Kimse Yok Mu Solidarity and Help Association been subject to inspections or investigations? Which state institutions have conducted these inspections or investigations? Has any activity or transaction that is deemed illegal been identified as a result of these inspections or investigations? If so, what are the activities or transactions of the association that, based on solid evidence, are against the laws or involved irregularities?”

Kimse Yok Mu, which is affiliated with the faith-based Hizmet movement, became the target of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government in the wake of a corruption scandal that became public with a wave of detentions on Dec. 17. The government blamed the Hizmet movement for the corruption probe, which implicated many important figures of the AK Party government, accusing the movement of plotting with foreign collaborators to take it down.

Tanrıkulu also questioned whether prosecutors have been notified if the state inspections did in fact reveal irregularities.

He also asked Davutoğlu to respond to allegations that some ministers refused to sign the decision stripping Kimse Yok Mu of its right to collect donations and that inspectors assigned by the Interior Ministry have been offered job promotions if they prepare a report implicating Kimse Yok Mu. He also demanded the text of an inspection report that provided the ground for the government decision. He indicated that the inspection was completed in just one and a half days.

Kimse Yok Mu is the only aid organization in Turkey that holds UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) special consultative status, and it began to develop internationally recognized relief programs in partnership with the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in 2013. It was also awarded the Turkish Grand National Assembly Outstanding Service Award in 2013, under AK Party rule.

Source: Today's Zaman , October 4, 2014


Related News

Police detain Bursa woman on coup charges a day after giving birth

Elif Aslaner, a religious education teacher who gave birth on Wednesday at a private hospital in Bursa, was detained due to her alleged links to Turkey’s Gülen group on Friday. Aslaner’s husband said his wife had preeclampsia and suffered from convulsions when she gave birth to her first baby and remained in a coma for two days.

Deputy slams AK Party with creating crisis as he resigns from party

Announcing his resignation at a press conference in Parliament, İşbilen slammed AK Party leader and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his “dregatory and remarks” against Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen and criticized Erdoğan’s government over the corruption scandal.

PM Erdoğan once defended Hizmet, said it was Feb. 28 [military coup] victim

Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has recently accused the faith-based Hizmet movement inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen of cooperating with coup perpetrators during the Feb. 28, 1997 post-modern coup era, defended the same movement at a parliamentary coup commission in 2012, when he said the movement’s followers had been victimized during the coup.

A Turkish coup, a family torn apart, a dramatic escape on foot: ‘Can you believe the things we went through?’

She could stay in Turkey where she might end up imprisoned, at risk of torture and sexual assault, and separated from her young children. Or she could take them on a dangerous journey, with no guarantee of survival.

Some states use religion for wars, says Catholic Bishop in İstanbul

Speaking at the Dialogue Symposium held in İstanbul on Friday, the spiritual leader of the Latin Catholic Community, Louis Pelatre said some states abuse religion for wars although all religions prohibit killing and war. “We have to fight against prejudices in order to prevent the use of religion in wars,” said Pelatre as he commended the interfaith dialogue efforts of Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.

Lessons from Dec. 17: Who is parallel?

To prove whether the Gülen movement has a parallel structure , one has to establish that the investigations and wiretappings were not conducted within the scope of a legal investigation. If that is proven, one has to demonstrate that the police and prosecutors in charge of the investigations were receiving instructions not from the state but from sources within the movement. Both of these claims have to be proven with evidence.

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

Turkish schools in Romania awarded with certificate of excellence

81-year-old man sentenced to 10 years in jail over Gulen link

Erdogan’s Journey – Conservatism and Authoritarianism in Turkey

It is unfair, unjust and politically motivated to incriminate the Gulen Movement

The role of civil society in Turkey’s democratization

Fethullah Gulen Acquitted

Turkish Cultural Night in Philippines

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News