The Gulen schools are signposts to a silent transformation in Turkey

Fatih elementary school, Istanbul
Fatih elementary school, Istanbul


Date posted: May 7, 2012

ATUL ANEJA, May 5, 2012

In the enclosed greens of a football ground at Istanbul’s Fatih University, a heated contest is underway. Young men from Kyrgyzstan, dressed in red, are feverishly locking horns with a team from Azerbaijan, attired in blue and white clothing.

The atmosphere around the ground is electric — the result of enthusiastic support that both teams get from the ebullient student fraternity in Fatih university, known for its cosmopolitan, international character. The contest ends in a 1-1 draw and both teams with their supporters head for the dining halls for a well-deserved lunch.

Fatih University reflects the silent transformation that Turkey is undergoing. The University is a private enterprise inspired by the Gulen movement (aka Hizmet movement) — a vehicle that has softly but powerfully conveyed a contemporary message of inclusive Sufi thinking. Reflecting the ideas of Fethullah Gulen, the movement also promotes solid values of business enterprise, modern education as well as non-discrimination and secularism in the political domain. It is also a shining example of the Gulen Movement’s commitment to spread quality education on a global scale. Gulen schools now operate in nearly 140 countries. The University is also a manifestation of the rise of the Anatolian Tigers— the pious and enormously successful grassroots businessmen from Anatolia, Turkey’s Asiatic part. The Gulen schools, as well as a handful of private universities such as Fatih, receive a significant part of their funding from the coffers of the Anatolian Tigers.

Source: Excerpted from the article Worldspace: Contradictory colours published on The Hindu http://www.thehindu.com/arts/magazine/article3383564.ece

Tags: | |


Related News

Media and education challenge in Afghanistan

The resurgence of violence, a stubbornly lingering narcotic-financing chain and growing economic difficulties in Afghanistan have put a damper on optimism for the future of the country, yet I believe hope is still strong among the resilient Afghan people and certainly there is no shortage of success stories that will keep them going.

“These schools are cultivating future’s prominent Malians”

The new campus, to be comprised of two schools buildings and a dorm, is rising on nearly 3.4 acres. Established in 2002, the Turkish schools in Mali are currently offering education to some 2 thousand students in the West African country.

Albanian lawmakers reject Erdoğan’s call to close Turkish schools

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s call for the closure of Turkish schools in Albania unleashed a swirl of debate in the Albanian political and media landscape, leading to intensified pressure on the government to clarify its position and Education Minister Lindita Nikolla saying that the government has already shut down a number of schools regarded as unfit according to criteria set in a recent education reform.

Turkey’s Erdogan Is Already Making the Most of His ‘Gift From Heaven’ After Coup Attempt

Erdogan is establishing the regime he wants even if the constitution is not amended, a regime that ensures complete loyalty, whether out of support for him or out of fear he is instilling in tens of thousands of government officials, hundreds of thousands of teachers, thousands of judges and prosecutors and army officers. The shakeup in the education system is perhaps the most significant, even more than in the justice system or the army.

Gülen book finds wide readership in northern Iraq

A book written by Kurdish journalist Rebwar Karim on Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen’s approach to the Kurdish question has been attracting a significant amount of attention in northern Iraq.

Afghan minister: Afghanistan will continue to support Turkish schools

Samim said: “Afghanistan has been going through a very difficult period over the last 30 years. Everything has been overturned by the civil war, bringing the state to a near-collapse with internal conflicts. During this period, Turkey has always been with us. They [Turkish volunteers] came and opened Turkish schools. The first Hizmet [the faith-based Hizmet movement]-affiliated school was opened in the country 20 years ago.

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

Why couldn’t Bozdağ talk about the parallel structure?

Kimse Yok Mu’s Healing Hand Extended to Two Thousand Nepalis

An interview at a party-state

Turkish NGOs provide iftar meals at al-Aqsa

Kazakh leader heads to Turkey to explain decision over Gulen schools

Unexpected consequences [of prep schools in Turkey]

Greece Warned Turkey Hours before the 2016 Coup Attempt

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News