News
Shutting down prep schools against free enterprise, analysts say
“It’s not possible to make out of this behavior befitting a government that defends a market economy,” Seyfettin Gürsel, director of Bahçeşehir University’s Center for Economic and Social Research, told Today’s Zaman. Opponents of the government’s plan have also noted that the prep schools are a consequence of the many inadequacies of Turkey’s education system, and said that prep schools help low-income students enter university.
AK Party takes action to expel deputy who opposed closure of prep schools
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) referred Kütahya deputy İdris Bal — who opposed the government’s planned closure of prep schools (dershanes) — to the party’s disciplinary board for expulsion on Thursday. Bal, reiterating his opposition to the closure of prep schools, he said that such a move would violate the Constitution.
Kimse Yok Mu medical volunteers in the Philippines
A Kimse Yok Mu team of 12 medical professionals have left for the typhoon-stricken Philippines. The team comprised of surgeons, midwifes, emergency medical technicians and doctors are tasked to heal the Filipinos suffering, in the aftermath of the devastating typhoon. A volunteer, midwife Bahriye Asirci, said “Both professionally and personally, it feels so good to reach out to those in trouble and need. May God let everyone experience the same.”
Arınç says Gülen’s offer to hand over prep schools ‘sacrifice’
Turkish Deputy PM Bülent Arınç has described the offer of Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen to hand over prep school management to the state an example of “sacrifice” and promised that the issue of prep schools will be resolved in a way that pleases everyone. “God knows that we don’t have an ambition to manage [these prep schools]; our desire is that these services don’t become the causalities of a disagreement,” Gülen reportedly said.
Turkish Deputy PM says he will not visit Gülen amid ‘prep school tension’
Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç has said that he will not visit Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen during his trip to the United States, amid tension between the Gülen movement and the government over the possible closure of private “dershane” examination prep schools. After a Cabinet meeting on Nov. 18, Arınç had said the government would reevaluate its work on the controversial closure of the prep schools “together with the related parties.”
The Turkish connection in India
As the Turkish Consulate gets ready to set up office in Hyderabad, Neeraja Murthy finds a Turkey-Hyderabad connect. Indialogue Foundation, the Turkish cultural centre acts as a hub for the 15 Turkish families living in Hyderabad. “We get together here during religious ceremonies like Eid and we organise inter-faith seminars, talks, conferences and cultural programmes. We arrange business meetings between Turkish and Indian businessmen and also organise Turkish celebrations.”
Mosaic Foundation brings together Denver’s prominent people over a friendship dinner
Multicultural Mosaic Foundation in Denver, Colorado, recently held its traditional Dialogue and Friendship Dinner at one of the city’s prestigious venues, Cable Center. Having the author-journalist Mustafa Akyol, on his “Islam without Extremes” promotion tour, as its keynote speaker, the event saw the attendance of several assembly members and senators of the states Colorado and Wyoming.
Peace Islands Institute Massachusetts Fifth Annual Friendship and Awards Dinner
The Peace Islands Institute Massachusetts branch held its “Fifth Annual Friendship & Awards Dinner.” Dr. Jon Pahl – Professor at the Department of History of Christianity from Temple University – delivered the keynote speech. The recipients of this year’s awards were Senate President Therese Murray, Tom Ashbrook, host of NPR’s On Point, and Muhammad Zaman, an associate professor of biomedical engineering at Boston University.
AK Party’s social media instructions to ministries raise questions of legality
The Taraf daily reported on the written instructions sent in an email to social media coordinators at government ministries by the AK Party’s media coordinator, Burak Gültekin. The email read as follows: “Dear ministry social media coordinator, Attached please see a note on prep schools…” The attachment included templates for tweets some of which include content teasing the Hizmet movement and the Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.
Dialogue and Friendship Dinner in Portland, Oregon
On November 13th, 2013, Pacifica Institute’s Portland chapter held its 5th Annual Dialogue and Friendship Dinner having the author-journalist Mustafa Akyol as its keynote speaker. The dinner was attended by Turkish and American academics and businessmen. In his keynote speech centered on his book “Islam without Extremes,” Mustafa Akyol pointed out the fact that Islam is misrepresented.
Debate over Turkish government move on prep schools grows
The debate over the Turkish government’s move to shut down private prep schools is growing with a battle of words between the administration and private education representatives. Self-exiled Islamic scholar Gülen, on the other hand, asked his followers “to be resolute and not yield to despair,” in a speech posted on herkul.org, a website that broadcasts his speeches.
Planned prep school ban [in Turkey] disregards basic rights as in single-party era
The government’s intentions to shut down private examination preparation centers [in Turkey] in spite of a strong backlash from educators, economists, students, parents and even terrorism experts brings back memories of the authoritarianism of the early years of the republic, when a single-party regime was in place.
Twitter users protest plan to close prep schools in Turkey
Turkish Twitter users are in an uproar over a report that the government has drafted a law which would close thousands of private preparatory education centres (known as “dershanes”) across the country. The schools are reportedly a point of tension between Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government and the Gülen movement that runs many of the schools.
Niagara Foundation Michigan bestows 2013 Peace and Dialogue Awards
On October 24th, Niagara Foundation’s Michigan chapter held its 3rd Annual Peace and Dialogue Award ceremony with the participation of numerous distinguished guests. In attendance of the ceremony were a large number of politicians, religious leaders and prominent figures around the state. Niagara Foundation is a Hizmet (Gulen Movement) initiative, which has headquarters in Chicago.
