Keyword: Hizmet and politics
Opposition deputy seeks answers on gov’t ban on Kimse Yok Mu
A lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has directed questions at Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on why the government banned charity group Kimse Yok Mu from collecting donations. In a formal parliamentary question, CHP Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanrıkulu asked Davutoğlu to explain the legal grounds for the government decision dated Sept. 22 to rescind Kimse Yok Mu’s permission to collect charitable donations
Gov’t’s hate campaign against Kimse Yok Mu draws condemnations
Various segments of the society, including politicians, volunteers and legal experts, continue to express frustration at a recent government decision to remove the status of public interest of Kimse Yok Mu, the largest volunteer and global aid organization based in Turkey.
Is there anybody there for Kimse Yok Mu?
Pink Floyd says the following in their song Comfortably Numb: “There is no pain you are receding. A distant ship, smoke on the horizon. You are only coming through in waves.” I think these words reveal what is going on in the “new Turkey” under the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government.
Abrupt gov’t decision to revoke status of Kimse Yok Mu draws criticism
Turkey’s leading charity, Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There), had its right to collect charitable donations abruptly rescinded on Tuesday, in what seems to be an arbitrary decision made during a Cabinet meeting, prompting harsh reactions from volunteers, lawmakers of the opposition parties and representatives of other civil society groups.
Cabinet bans charity Kimse Yok Mu from collecting donations
The Taraf daily ran a story arguing that the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government planned to remove Kimse Yok Mu’s public interest status, which would prevent it from collecting donations. The report argued that the proposal was pending with the Cabinet, expecting it to take effect before the Eid al-Adha holiday.
Irregularities mark so-called Cabinet decision on Kimse Yok Mu
After the recent controversial Cabinet decision to rescind the Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There) charity organization’s right to collect charitable donations, some irregularity claims have been raised by observers who say this decision was taken arbitrarily with no basis.
Inspectors finds no flaw in Kimse Yok Mu activities
A report prepared by inspectors assigned by the Interior Ministry earlier this year clearly states that not a single irregularity was discovered in the activities of the charity organization Kimse Yok Mu at the end of an audit carried out by the ministry’s inspectors.
Cingöz: Kimse Yok Mu welcomes all auditors from state institutions
İsmail Cingöz, president of the Turkish charity Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There), which is affiliated with the Hizmet movement inspired by prominent scholar Fethullah Gülen, explained to Today’s Zaman that the organization has contributed to social and international peace since the day of its foundation.
Gülen: The Ambiguous Politics of Market Islam in Turkey and the World
The Hizmet Movement is Turkey’s most influential Islamic identity community. Widely praised throughout the early 2000s as a mild and moderate variation on Islamic political identity, the Gülen Movement has long been a topic of both adulation and conspiracy in Turkey, and has become more controversial as it spreads across the world. In Gülen, Joshua D. Hendrick suggests that when analyzed in accordance with its political and economic impact, the Gülen Movement, despite both praise and criticism, should be given credit for playing a significant role in Turkey’s rise to global prominence.
İstanbul Transportation Authority cancels bus line to Fatih University
Amid growing examples of discrimination against the Hizmet movement, the İstanbul Transportation Authority (İETT) canceled one bus line to Fatih University, which is considered to be affiliated with the Hizmet movement. An official from İETT, İsmihan Şimşek talked to Today’s Zaman and admitted that the 76F bus line had been canceled, but dismissed the idea that the decision deliberately targeted Fatih University. According to her, following analysis of demand for bus services in the region, the 76F bus line was discontinued while two other lines, HT18 and 418, continue to run with stops at Fatih University.
Code ‘111′ profiling of ‘Hizmet’ on Parliament’s agenda
Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanrıkulu has brought to Parliament’s agenda a code allegedly used by the Ministry of Family and Social Policy to classify individuals believed to be affiliated with a social movement. Code “111” was allegedly used to classify people who are believed to be affiliated with the Hizmet movement, which is inspired by the teachings of Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.
Halki, pope, patriarch and Gülen
The way Turkey’s chief political Islamist and new president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has approached the reopening of the Halki seminary, a school that had trained Eastern Orthodox clergy for the Patriarchate for more than a century until it was forcibly shut down in 1971, represents a fundamental flaw in the thinking of so-called Islamists, who place more emphasis on symbolism than substance and like very much to employ divisive and hateful discourse as opposed to reaching out and embracing different faiths and cultures.
Hizmet and self-criticism
Fethullah Gülen stated a few days ago that he made a mistake by supporting the Justice and Development Party (AKP) during the 2010 referendum campaign. Even though, as of today, I do not think that supporting the constitutional amendment package was wrong in itself, it seems that this package has paved the way for the AKP’s growing semi-despotism.
