Gülen’s lawyer: Targeting overseas Turkish educators breaks law

Nurullah Albayrak, the lawyer representing Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, speaks to media in this file photo taken in July, 2014. (Photo: Today's Zaman, Ali Unal)
Nurullah Albayrak, the lawyer representing Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, speaks to media in this file photo taken in July, 2014. (Photo: Today's Zaman, Ali Unal)


Date posted: February 13, 2015

Nurullah Albayrak, the legal representative of Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, in a written statement on Wednesday spoke out against a front-page story in the pro-government Star daily that published the photos of 160 educators at Turkish schools overseas that are affiliated with the faith-based Gülen movement, saying the daily is breaking the law and violating those individuals’ human rights by depicting innocent people as criminals.

The Star daily, on its front page on Wednesday, published the photos of 106 people and claimed that they are “world imams in 106 countries,” implying they are there as representatives of the Gülen movement, also known as the Hizmet movement, and inspired by the views of Gülen.

The daily published the story after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said during a press conference held on his plane on his way to Colombia on Sunday: “The world imams [of the Gülen movement] will be announced soon. Let’s see what the reaction from the world will be.”

Since a major corruption scandal erupted on Dec. 17, 2013 implicating the inner circles of Erdoğan and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), Erdoğan has accused sympathizers of the Gülen movement, especially those in the state bureaucracy, of masterminding the corruption probe in an attempt to overthrow the AK Party government. Erdoğan claims that the Turkish schools defame the AK Party government and Turkey, contrary to statements made before the corruption scandal saying that the schools promote Turkey and the Turkish language.

Despite repeatedly accusing the movement of being behind any alleged plot on Turkey’s political scene, Erdoğan has so far failed to present any strong evidence and has not brought the matters to court, Albayrak stated. Strongly denying the accusations, Albayrak said Erdoğan’s claims against Gülen are groundless and do not reflect reality.

Gülen’s lawyer stated that the Star daily, upon the instructions of Erdoğan, has violated laws and people’s personal rights by targeting Gülen and the 106 education workers to create a perception that these people are criminals.

Albayrak said those who were depicted as “Gülen’s world imams” are mostly working as volunteer administrators in Turkish schools in these 106 countries and Star gave no evidence that they have been involved in any crime.

According to the lawyer, the photos that were released by Star were taken from official documents and passports, which is private information, and releasing them is a crime under the Constitution and the law.

In the statement, Albayrak said Turkish schools, which operate in some 160 countries in the world and are supported by Gülen, are established based on the laws of those countries.

The Turkish volunteers, who have never been involved in any crime in their lives and are only focused on educational goals, have been discriminated against by the Star daily, Albayrak added. These individuals, inspired by Gülen’s humanitarian, civil and moral teachings, have traveled to many countries in remote parts of the world to open educational institutions to promote world peace, Albayrak said.

Source: Today's Zaman , February 12, 2015


Related News

Bank Asya weathers withdrawals, says CEO

“The deposit withdrawal was a significant sum, but new deposits worth more than half that amount were placed in the bank, making it possible for us to manage our liquidity,” Beyaz told Reuters in an interview late Jan. 21.

Gulen-inspired school raided by Turkish diplomats, Turkish soldiers in Afghanistan

A group of Turkish diplomats led by Turkish Consul General Şevki Seçkin Alpay together with dozens of Turkish soldiers and Afghan military police officers raided an Afghan-Turk school in Mazar-e Sharif, northern Afghanistan, on Tuesday.

Islamic scholar Gülen’s poems turned into songs for international album

Artists from twelve different countries composed music for poems written by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who is known for his global message of peace and inter-faith tolerance, for an album titled “Colors of Peace-Rise Up” to promote peace and tolerance. The poems were translated into English, and each artist selected one poem to interpret […]

Well-known sociologist says Gülen’s name on terrorist list ’alarming’

The chairman of the philosophy department at Texas Tech University, prominent sociologist Mark Webb, has said that the branding of Fethullah Gülen as a terrorist, is a “very alarming development.”

BBC interviews families of abducted Gülen followers

The families of abducted Gülen followers, whose abductions have been confirmed by eyewitnesses, have spoken to BBC Turkish service. Eleven people have been reported missing in Ankara since January.

Islamic scholar Gülen says Turkey’s graft scandal can’t be covered up

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has said a recent graft scandal that has rocked Turkey for nearly five weeks cannot be covered up despite massive efforts by the authorities to weather it down and crush those who speak out on the matter.

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

Kimse Yok Mu supports the orphan in Chad

Turks, Rio de Janeiro gov’t sign agreement to further education efforts in Brazil

Gülen worries fake news could associate new terror attacks, assassinations in Turkey with him

The Hizmet movement and participatory democracy

Hizmet, forming a party and capturing the state!

UN slams Thailand, Myanmar over deportation of Turk

Opposition lashes out at terror investigation against Kimse Yok Mu

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News