UK Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing on Gülen and the Hizmet Movement


Date posted: December 6, 2016

Foreign Affairs Committee Inquiry into UK’s relations with Turkey: hearing session on on Gülen and the Hizmet

The UK Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee is examining the bilateral relationship between the UK and Turkey, focusing on rights and freedoms as well as how Turkish foreign and security policies relate to those of the UK. The inquiry is ongoing. The Committee inquiry will cover topics such as the current state of UK-Turkey relations, and the FCO’s recent record in managing this relationship; the status in Turkey of the rights and values supported by the FCO, including freedom of speech and assembly, minority rights, and the status of democracy; Turkey’s aspirations to join the EU and how that is impacted by Brexit; Turkey’s foreign and security policies in the Middle East, and how these correspond with FCO policies in the region; Turkey’s policies towards different Kurdish groups, both with Turkey itself and the wider region; and Turkey’s role as a NATO partner to the UK, including its capabilities in the fight against ISIL. The Committee will also consider recent developments in Turkey such as the failed coup of July 2016 and the declaration of a state of emergency, which gives President Erdogan enhanced powers for an additional three months, which has implications for Turkey’s democracy and human rights. Since the Turkish government have sought to justify their crackdown on human rights and democracy on the pretext of eradicating the Fethullah Gülen-inspired Hizmet movement, the Committee invited participants of the Hizmet movement in the US and UK to address the allegations. The following hearing is the outcome of this invitation. Written evidence was also submitted to the Committee before this oral hearing and can be accessed here.

The hearing was held on Tuesday, 15 November 2016 and without the intermissions, lasted 1:07 hr. The witnesses were: Dr Yüksel Alp Aslandoğan, Executive Director, Alliance for Shared Values, and Mr Özcan Keleş, Chairman, Dialogue Society.

For the original source please click visit: Parliament Live Tv

Source: Youtube , December 1, 2016


Related News

Ayse Bohurler says International Herald Tribune misquoted remarks on Gülen movement

22 April 2012 / TODAYSZAMAN.COM Ayşe Böhürler, a founding member of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), has said her remarks on the faith-based Gülen movement were misquoted in an International Herald Tribune article last week, denying statements that were highly critical of the movement and attributed to her by the paper. “It […]

Did Erdogan STAGE the coup?

‘Government should be won through a process of free and fair elections, not force,” Gulen said. “I pray to God for Turkey, for Turkish citizens, and for all those currently in Turkey that this situation is resolved peacefully and quickly.’ Gulen sharply rejected any responsibility: ‘As someone who suffered under multiple military coups during the past five decades, it is especially insulting to be accused of having any link to such an attempt.

Erdogan’s Failed Crusade: The World Rejects His War on Hizmet

All these aspects rose up in my mind just over three months after the death of pro-education, interfaith dialogue, and non-violence champion, Turkish Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, at 83 years in U.S. self-exile, when a report on the Gulen Movement (branded Hizmet—Service) landed on my desk in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

As I researched the Gulen schools in Germany, I experienced beyond what I had expected

Dr. Jochen Thies’ new book focuses on Gulen-inspired Schools in Germany. Dr. Jochen Thies introduced the book he wrote about the schools opened in Germany by Turkish entrepreneurs: “We Are a Part of This Society-A Look at the Education Initiatives of the Gulen Movement”. Dr. Gunther Mulack, Director of the German Orient Institute, who was also […]

Turkish imam in Copenhagen says embassy spied on 4 people, 14 schools

A religious adviser to the Turkish embassy in Copenhagen, Adnan Bülent Baloğlu told a local paper that the Turkish outpost has collected information on “4 individuals and 14 schools” affiliated with the Gulen movement in Denmark.

Talking with the “Religious Terrorist” that Turkey Wants Trump to Extradite

Regardless of the threat Gulen poses as the purported leader of an international apparatus, any movement is a threat in that it is not easily controlled. If Gulen is right, and Erdogan fears anything that he cannot control, then the Gulen movement with its critical stance towards what it regards as abuses of the public trust, must seem threatening indeed.

Latest News

Sacramento leaders gather for Iftar dinner in celebration of Ramadan

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

In Case You Missed It

Lawyer put behind bars along with 3-month-old baby

Fethullah Gülen strongly condemns US consulate attack, extends condolences

Divided republic of RTE

Unity in diversity

One of his sons is with the PKK, the other is with the Gulen movement

Evolution of the Gulen [Hizmet] Movement

Should I not respond to those who want to strangle me?

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News