Date posted: August 6, 2016
Fethullah Gulen Talked to Kurdish TV NRT on Kurds, human rights and Erdogan.
Tags: Asia | Defamation of Hizmet | Fethullah Gulen | Interviews with Fethullah Gulen | Iraq | Kurdish Issue | Military coups in Turkey |

The Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) — whose honorary chairman is Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen — has stated that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been trying to create the perception that the Hizmet movement is being backed by the US with his recent request for Gülen’s extradition though there is no legal basis for one.

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.

Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs has refused to allocate an exhibit space at a Ramadan book fair to the country’s largest religious publication group over its affiliation with the Gülen movement.

Islamic theologians coming together in a workshop organized by the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) have condemned recent allegations directed at the faith-based Hizmet movement by top government officials, stating that it is unislamic to engage in lies, slander and defamation.

Circles close to the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government have been accused of conducting a large-scale black propaganda war against the Hizmet movement, which was inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen; media outlets close to the movement; and journalists critical of the government.

With more than 120,000 public workers suspended and nearly 40,000 people in prison, the aftermath of Turkey’s failed July 15 coup is being felt across every part of society, including its highest-ranked schools. The day after the coup attempt, 1,577 deans — working at nearly every university in the country — were forced to resign. An estimated 200,000 students were left in limbo after the closure of 15 universities and 1,043 private schools.
