Keyword: Democracy
Tariq Ramadan says Erdoğan should practice what he preached to Mubarak
Prominent scholar Tariq Ramadan, grandson of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, has criticized the Turkish prime minister for seeking more power and urged him to rethink staying in power for a longer time. Ramadan said, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan once told former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak — that one day he will have to know how to leave — is true for him as well. “[Erdoğan] also needs to get this right.”
Saylorsburg protesters focus on Turkish cleric
As a corruption investigation embroils the prime minister of Turkey and the country’s ruling party, protesters descended for a third time on Saylorsburg against Turkish cleric Fethullah Gülen. But Alp Aslandogan, spokesman for Gülen’s movement, said the protesters’ views are contradictory. He said Erdogan has blamed Gülen for the investigation, so protesters are supporting the ruling party by protesting Gülen now.
Senior AK Party member admits profiling of citizens in government, private sector
A senior member of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has admitted that the government has profiled some 2,000 senior public officials including police chiefs, prosecutors and judges as well as academics, journalists and businesspeople.
Koza Altın latest victim of government silencing political dissent
Gold mining company Koza Altın A.Ş., the owner of Bugün daily and Kanal Türk TV station, had its activities halted on Tuesday in Çukuralan goldfield, one of the company’s five major gold mines, in a move that has been perceived as the most recent example of the government’s exploitation of inspections and red tape to put pressure on those with critical views.
Turkey in 2014: Not too bright [Witch-hunt against Gulen Movement expected]
As I have written before, if there are bureaucrats who misuse their authority to serve the interest of the Gülen Movement, or any other entity, the government certainly has the right to fire them and bring them to justice. However, what Dilipak describes is a much larger scale witch-hunt, which can only violate many civil liberties and raise the tension in society to new heights.
A useful guide to understanding the Hizmet-AK Party tension
Mustafa Yeşil, head of the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV), of which Fethullah Gülen is honorary president, talks about the reasons for the increasing tension between the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and the Hizmet movement, which conducts praiseworthy activities in Turkey and around the globe with inspiration from well-respected Turkish-Islamic scholar Gülen.
TV station won’t cover AK Party events due to harassment of reporter
A national TV station announced on Monday that it will no longer send reporters to Justice and Development Party (AK Party) rallies after one of their reporters was harassed by party supporters on Friday during the party rally organized to welcome Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at İstanbul Atatürk Airport.
GYV calls on government to respect judiciary amid corruption probe
The government should respect Turkey’s independent judiciary as a corruption probe that has implicated senior members of the ruling party deepens, the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV), whose honorary chair is Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, said in a statement published on its website on Monday.
Destici: No one should attempt to change law to save themselves
Grand Unity Party (BBP) leader Mustafa Destici, speaking about an ongoing corruption operation and the government’s response to it, said on Sunday that everyone has a responsibility to respect the laws in the country and that efforts to change the laws to protect a certain group of people from accusations are unacceptable.
A destructive option for Turkey takes shape
It is a “parallel state,” Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan claims, and the movement gets help from its die-hard loyal media, as well as some leftist-secular circles and even from abroad. Such diversion on this issue helps him buy time, water down the content of accusations and divert attention.
Why Mr. Gülen was targeted
The main difference between Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen and the politician who became Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is that the former is vehemently opposed to the use and abuse of Islam as a political ideology and party philosophy while the latter sees the religion as an instrument to channel votes and to consolidate his ranks among supporters.
