Parents seek TL 40,000 in damages for violation of students’ educational rights

İsmail Topçuoğlu is seeking TL 40,000 in damages from the Education Ministry for violating students' educational rights. (Photo: Cihan)
İsmail Topçuoğlu is seeking TL 40,000 in damages from the Education Ministry for violating students' educational rights. (Photo: Cihan)


Date posted: August 31, 2015

AYŞENUR PARILDAK / ANKARA

Parents İsmail and Seval Topçuoğlu are seeking TL 40,000 in damages from the Education Ministry for violating students’ educational rights by adopting a new regulation about dershanes (prep schools), claiming it aims to bypass a top court’s ruling to annul a controversial law to close down the schools.

The claimants said in their petition recently submitted to the Ankara Provincial Directorate for National Education, “Benefiting from the education services provided by private enterprises is part of the educational rights guaranteed in Article 42 of the Constitution.” They also emphasized that students’ parents have the freedom to choose where their children are to be educated and neither the government nor any other powers can restrict that right.

The parents say they will also file a criminal complaint with the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office over the Ministry of Education not implementing the top court’s ruling on prep schools.

Mehmet Kasap, a lawyer representing the Pak Education and Science Employees Union (Pak Eğitim-İş), told Today’s Zaman on Monday: “In the event that the dershane issue cannot be solved locally, we will take the case to the European Court of Human Rights [ECtHR] for both violating educational rights and for not implementing the top court’s ruling. Our country [government] will then have to pay millions in compensation.”

The Constitutional Court on July 13 annulled a controversial law that ordered the closure or conversion of all prep schools to ordinary schools by Sept. 1 with a majority vote of 12-to-five. Soon after the ruling, Ministry of Education officials made statements that the continued operation of prep schools is still not legally possible because of a new ministry regulation in which all the articles related to the establishment of prep schools were eliminated.

Speaking to the press on Aug. 7, Education Minister Nabi Avcı announced that current prep schools can continue to operate under a new name and offer “private educational courses” if they meet the requirements stated in the regulation.

Giving details about the operation of those new private educational courses, Avcı said: “The classroom size for those private educational courses that will provide education in three groups of science [math, science and social sciences] must not exceed 16. Every student will attend those courses based on their age group. Those prep courses that have not yet applied to convert to actual high schools will have to apply [for the conversion courses] before Sept. 1.”

He also said prep schools will need a new license from the ministry in order to be able to offer these private educational courses. A number of educators regard this as the government’s attempt to prevent Gülen-inspired prep schools from operating.

The law ordering the closure of dershanes was widely seen as part of the Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) witch hunt against the Gülen movement, also known as the Hizmet movement, a civil society initiative inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen that focuses on education and interfaith dialogue. Gülen became the target of the AK Party following the eruption of a corruption scandal in December 2013 in which senior government members were implicated. Then-Prime Minister and current President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused the movement of masterminding the probe in an attempt to topple the government and has since targeted those who are inspired by Gülen’s ideas.

The law ordering the closure of dershanes was widely seen as part of the Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) witch hunt against the Gülen movement, also known as the Hizmet movement, a civil society initiative inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen that focuses on education and interfaith dialogue. Gülen became the target of the AK Party following the eruption of a corruption scandal in December 2013 in which senior government members were implicated. Then-Prime Minister and current President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused the movement of masterminding the probe to topple the government and has since targeted those who are inspired by Gülen’s ideas.

Source: Today's Zaman , August 31, 2015


Related News

Religion as a force for peace

ŞAHİN ALPAY One of the great advantages of Turkey, surely, is the dominance of religious scholars who have promoted conceptions of Islam promoting peace, socio-economic development and democracy. In this context, contributions of Said Nursi (1878-1960), a Kurd from Bitlis, and Fethullah Gülen, a Turk from Erzurum, are surely exceptional. In Turkey hopes for an […]

Why is the Gulen movement’s statement on press freedom significant?

BÜLENT KENEŞ As Turkey slows down its democratization and liberalization reforms, and occasionally backpedals on certain reforms, it runs into more serious problems. In particular, the slowdown in the democratization reforms Turkey is supposed to implement within the context of its European Union membership bid results in the deterioration of existing rights and freedoms. The […]

Minister: Turkish gov’t racks up $5 bln in confiscation of Gülen-linked properties

The value of immovable properties including dormitories, real estates and schools that the government has confiscated as part of its clampdown against Gülen movement so far, totals around TL 15 billion or $4.9 billion, according to Environment and Urban Planning Minister Mehmet Özhaseki.

Kemalo-Islamists versus civil society and Hizmet

İHSAN YILMAZ When summarizing the recent Cabinet meeting to correspondents, the speaker of the Cabinet, Bülent Arınç, referred to a religious concept, “fitnah” (sedition). He was implying that the Hizmet movement was engaged in an illegitimate psychological media campaign against his government. He even a recited a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) on fitnah […]

A new ring to the chain of Turkish schools in Kyrgyzstan

CENGIZ OMUKEYEV, BISHKEK/KYRGYZSTAN Seytek Grammar School, built by Sebat Educational Institution in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, started with a gorgeous opening ceremony. The opening ribbon of the impressive school building was cut by Kamila Talieva, Vice President of Kyrgyzstan. The folk dance performance of the students drew long applause from the audience. Talieva stated in her keynote […]

So who’s finished exactly: the Gülen movement or the AKP?

Many writers and thinkers in Turkey, responding to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan crew’s full-scale, state-backed attack on the Gülen movement, noted wisely, “You cannot wipe out that entire sociology.”

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 Government Imprisons One More Mother With Her Baby Over Links To Gülen Movement

Students from 135 countries to join Turkish Olympiads this year

One wounded in armed attack on university preparation course

Woman accused of being Gülenist by ex-husband in prison for 10 months

Fethullah Gülen lawsuit [in the US] thrown out in setback for Turkey’s Erdoğan

Smear campaign websites cleared while targeted journalists accused

An Indian professor’s reflections on Erdogan’s visit to India, crackdown on Gulen movement

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News