Pak-Turk schools replace Turkish principals with Pakistanis


Date posted: August 10, 2016

Haider Ali Sindhu

ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) – Paving the way for a drastic shuffle in Pak-Turk schools, as many as 28 principles of the schools have been removed from their posts having Turkish nationality. Moreover, Board of Directors have also been dissolved in a latest move.

The decision to reorganize the network of schools run by Gulen supporters came after Erdogan administration pushed Pakistan to take action against the network as Turkey considers Fethullah Gulen behind the botched coup and consequently wants an end to promotion of Gulen ideology.

A source in the federal government told Dawn that the Turkish government had suggested handing over of the chain to an international NGO having links with the Erdogan administration.

A source privy to the developments told that the Turkish nationals holding managerial designations will now serve as teachers in Pak-Turk schools. Reportedly, a new six-member BoD with complete local representation had been formed to run the affairs of the school.

Last week, during an official visit to Islamabad, Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, stressed the chain of ‘Gulen-run’ schools in Pakistan should be shut down. The latest move is perceived as Pakistan’s reply to the request.

On the other hand, Islamabad-Parents Teacher Association of Pak-Turk School on Tuesday held a press conference to address the concerns of parents over news reports regarding closure and transfer of the schools.

The press conference was headed by Hafiz SA Rehman, one of the parents besides being a senior lawyer of Supreme Court of Pakistan conducting and pleading as counsel the case of Pak-Turk institution in Islamabad High Court.

Hafiz SA Rehman on behalf of all the school management, parents and students said, “Our sympathies and good wishes go in the best interest of Turkey. But we are also extremely disturbed by attempts by certain segments to impute political and even terrorist linkages with the Pak-Turk schools that are capable of stigmatizing and jeopardizing our children as students and us as parents” SA Rehman said according to The Nation.

 

Source: Daily Pakistan , August 10, 2016

Tags: | | | |


Related News

Pakistan submits to Turkey’s ‘authoritarian demands’ on Gulen

Authorities have ordered teachers with alleged links to Turkish cleric Gulen to leave the country as Turkey’s President Erdogan visits Pakistan. Experts say the move is aimed at appeasing Ankara. Pakistani liberal activists say Islamabad should not encourage Erdogan by obliging his government’s unlawful and authoritarian demands. Promotion of secular and democratic values is the only way forward, they say.

Silencing Taraf daily

The liberal Taraf daily, where I write a column, is one of the few independent newspapers in this country. Those who don’t know the Turkish media well need to know that media outlets are largely owned by private holdings which have close ties to the government. Thus, Turkish newspapers need to consider whether their reporting would harm their bosses’ business connections with the government.

Erdogan’s Purge Stretches All The Way To Pakistan

Outside the Karachi Press Club, Turkish residents release doves as a sign of peace; 25 Turkish teachers plea for safety in Pakistan. These Turkish families have lived here for over two decades, teaching at a network of international schools led by Fethullah Gülen, a moderate Islamic cleric from Turkey, who currently lives in the US.

Turkish school honored with state medal in Laos

Laos, officially the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, has honored a Turkish school, the Eastern Star Bilingual School, with its highest state medal for the school’s excellent performance in an international olympiad. The medal was bestowed upon the school by the republic’s president, Choummaly Sayasone, and was presented at a ceremony hosted by the Ministry of […]

Ethiopian schools linked to Turkish cleric are sold to German educators

A network of schools in Ethiopia linked to Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen is changing ownership. The sale of the Nejashi Ethio-Turkish International Schools follows pressure from the government of Turkish President Erdogan, who is urging countries that host institutions inspired by Gulen to close or take them over.

Don’t Make A Mystic into a Martyr: Fethullah Gülen as Peacebuilder

My conclusion? He’s a mystic in the Sufi tradition of Islam. And like other famous mystics in history—notably Gandhi, or Rumi—from whom Gülen draws deeply, Fethullah Gülen is a peacebuilder. And history teaches us that peacebuilders are likely to be misunderstood, vilified, and targeted. It would be tragic if once again historical forces conspire to turn a mystic into a martyr.

Latest News

Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison

Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney

Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement

ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment

New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement

European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests

ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases

Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade

Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet

In Case You Missed It

Turkish Education Ministry engaged in profiling of staff, daily claims

Peace Islands Institute hosts iftar in NY

The turmoil in Turkey – The terror threat is real and is made worse by Erdogan’s paranoia

Turkish schools substantiate our close mutual cooperation

The confidence crisis and remaining wounds

Who staged a coup against whom on Dec. 17?

Yalçınbayır: Turkey has tendency towards institutionalization of bribery, corruption

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News