Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbaev rather quickly defused the problem with Turkey by making a visit to Ankara to meet with President Erdogan. Nazarbaev did not agree to close down the Gulen schools in Kazakhstan, but he did promise to carefully scrutinize those running the schools and those teaching in them.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has bluntly blamed it on the Hizmet movement, Gülen’s initiative for intercultural and interfaith dialogue and education in the country expanding across the world today. But for many immensely impressed by Gülen’s global humanitarian, social and Islam-based peace activism, it remains an obscure question as to how the former ally of his country is now blamed for the coup.
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.
Pak-Turk International’s Parents and Teachers Association (PTA) on Tuesday stressed against transferring the institutions’ control to other organisations as it will affect the future of its 1500 teachers’ future along with 10,000 students enrolled in 28 schools, colleges. The spokesman urged that if the government found any one from these schools involved in illegal practices, it should take strict action against him.
Schools and educational centres in the Kurdistan Region associated with the Gulen movement have insisted they are a private company operating under the Kurdish Ministry of Education and have no ties to Turkey. “In short, we are a Kurdistan company,” an official at the schools told Rudaw, speaking anonymously. “Our institutions operate under the directives and regulations of the Kurdistan Ministry of Education.”
A group calling itself the Pak-Turk International Schools and Colleges Parent-Teacher Association expressed concern on Saturday over reports that the government was going to hand over the school management to “a political entity”. Speaking at a press conference at the Raiwind Road campus, they said they would oppose such a move.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday granted the Deputy Attorney General (DAG) three weeks to seek instructions from the ministry of interior and the ministry of foreign affairs after the Pak-Turk Education Foundation moved the IHC against the possible closure of its school network by the government.
The official announcement did not provide any details about the visit, but Nazarbayev is expected to smooth over any disagreements between the two Turkic countries following the failed coup. The Kazakh-Turkish schools employ 1,124 teachers, of whom 1,030 are Kazakh citizens (91.7%) and 94 are Turkish citizens (8.3%).” Kazakhstan also has the Suleyman Demirel University, opened in Almaty in 1996.
Burhan Cikili is an academic and vice-chair of the Formosa institute. The organization, which has a plush office on the 21st floor of a central Taipei office building, is something of a local think-tank linking Taiwan and Turkey. It holds conferences, seminars and lectures, and collaborates with local universities and institutions. It says it is mainly funded by local Taiwanese and Turkish businesspeople.
There are 20 schools serving to 12,719 students in Northern Iraq Kurdish Region. Kurdistan Regional Government announced that the 20 schools affiliated with the Gulen movement will not be shut down. There were rumors in the media, in the aftermath of the coup attempt on July 15, about the closure of the Gulen inspired schools.
The Islamabad High Court yesterday issued notices to ministries of foreign affairs and interior in a petition moved against any possible step of the government to close down the schools being run by Pak-Turk Education Foundation.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) directed the deputy attorney general to seek instructions from the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after Pak-Turk Education Foundation moved the IHC against the possible closure of the network by the government, on Wednesday.
Karachi—Sindh Education minister Jam Mehtab Dhahar has assured a Turkish team Tuesday that Pak-Turkish schools will not be closed down in Sindh or anywhere in Pakistan. They gave the assurance to the visiting Turkish team during meeting in Karachi, with the Turkish officials, here on a tour.