Fethullah Gulen promotes tolerance, interfaith dialog, and above-all: he promotes education. And yet he’s a mystery man — he’s never seen or heard in public — and the more power he gains, the more questions are raised about his motives and the schools.
Fethullah Gulen’s embrace of Western values has helped to modernize Turkey.
Abdulhamit Bilici, general manager of the Cihan News Agency in Istanbul said: Until early 90’s Islamic movement had the problem with the concept of secularism, democracy and other universal concepts.
So Fethullah Gulen was the one of the pioneers in the sense he said in the early 9o’s: “Turkey will not turn from democracy”
Democracy and Islam of course are compatible.
The way the AK Party has proposed new laws to increase government control over judges and prosecutors and how many investigations have slowed down have raised suspicions that the government might be trying to hide corruption. The censorship of Turkish media and the recent attempts to change laws about the Internet to easily increase censorship are raising concern.
Division at home, cooperation abroad
Last week I visited Canada to speak at a panel on Turkey in Ottawa and give a lecture on Turkey-EU relations at the Munk School for Global Affairs in Toronto. The panel was part of the first Turkic-Canadian Convention intended to boost economic and cultural relations between Canada and Turkey. The convention was organized by the Anatolian Heritage Federation and was also attended by five members of the Turkish Parliament from the three major parties.
California Muslim Leaders Raised Their Voices, Condemning Extremism
Pacifica Institute hosted a panel on “Muslim Voices against Extremism” in cooperation with Bayan Graduate School and Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez.
Food and fun abound at Turkish Festival
Alamo Plaza was alive with music and food, Saturday, for the annual Turkish Festival. The free event celebrated different aspects of the Turkish culture including folk dance, the performing arts and authentic cuisine. This year’s theme was San Antonio Goes Turkish.
Erdogan’s Failed Crusade: The World Rejects His War on Hizmet
Indigenous African knowledge has it that when you tell a lie, it normally does not take long to dawn. As a warning against cheating, my mother, who died thirty-one years ago this year (1994), used to admonish us: “You do it in my absence, and what happens next is I see it all.” In the […]
International Women’s Day Message from Fethullah Gülen
No society can truly move forward if women, who make half of its population, are limited in their freedoms, rights, and opportunities. The way women are treated and the rights given to them are signs of where that society stands in terms of universal human values.
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