Fethullah Gulen: Turkish Scholar, Cleric — And Conspirator?
A Rare Interview: Jamie Tarabay Meets Turkish Scholar Fethullah Gulen
Date posted: January 8, 2014
Al-Jazeera America reporter Jamie Tarabay interviewed Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen in his home last spring. It was published in The Atlantic last August. Gulen is a Turkish spiritual leader to millions of Turks, both in Turkey and around the world, and the head of the Gulen movement. His network of followers spans the globe, and it has opened academically-focused schools in 90 countries, including the U.S.
Robert Siegel speaks with Tarabay about the interview.
“Hizmet” movement, the current tensions and self-criticism (Interview with Ihsan Yilmaz)
My fourth criticism is the lack of empathy. We haven’t empathized enough with Kurds, Armenians and Greeks. In 2011, Journalists and Writers Foundation said to the commission of Constitution in the parliament that, besides Turkish, using Kurdish as a language of education should be considered a human right.
Madeleine Albright’s remarks about Gulen Movement
In a world that lacks direction, there can be no doubt that a pathfinder is needed. It is much more likely to be found in the values that reside at the heart of the Gülen Institute and this luncheon series. These values include commitment to international dialogue, an understanding of cultural diversity, support for human justice and a love of peace.
Fethullah Gülen on Islam, democracy and freedom of speech
Publishing a book in 2009 about Francis of Assisi’s peaceful encounter with Egypt’s Sultan Malik al-Kamil during the Fifth Crusade led me to meet a lot of people with an interest in improving interreligious relations. Among them were a number of Turkish immigrants who are followers of the Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen. I observed that through a network of private schools, foundations and media organizations, they have worked very hard to improve Muslim-Christian relations.
TURKISH FOUNDATION HIT IN ARSON GETS POLICE PROTECTION; 2ND GROUP VICTIMIZED
The municipality of Deventer will be placing surveillance cameras at the building of Turkish foundation Gouden Generatie on Tuesday. The building was set aflame on Saturday. Until the new cameras are in place, police surveillance will be intensified around the building, a spokesperson for the municipality said to RTL Nieuws.
Filling the gap left by Gulen
Erdogan and Gulen shared the goal of creating a “devout generation”. Yet despite their similar outlook on life and objectives, the Gulen movement never merged completely with the AKP. However, Gulen was never willing to subordinate himself to Erdogan, which is why the two men fell out in 2013 and the informal coalition with the Gulen movement collapsed.
Political predictions for 2014
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is getting lonelier and this makes him more ill-tempered. There are two big risk areas for Erdoğan. One of them is the total war he declared against the Gülen movement for no apparent reason.
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