The Hizmet movement and participatory democracy

Gökhan Bacık

The differences between the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and the Hizmet movement have become critically important since the graft probe of Dec. 17. The government quickly declared that there was no corruption. According to the government, Dec. 17 saw an organized attack meant to topple the government. However, almost all public surveys confirm that at least 65 percent of Turkish people disagree with the government, and believe that the graft probe that was made public that day addressed a corruption issue.

Toward an Islamic enlightenment

Şahin Alpay

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who has put forward an interpretation of Islam that advocates peace, democracy, secularism (in the sense of freedom of religion and conscience for all), science, education and a market economy, and who has supported interfaith dialogue and mutual understanding and respect for people of different ethnic and religious identities and lifestyles, has been the topic of much curiosity for native as well as foreign observers of Turkey.

NY Times: Turkey Deports Journalist for Criticizing Government on Twitter

Turkey deported an Azerbaijani journalist on Friday for “posting tweets against high-level state officials,” according to an Interior Ministry order obtained by his newspaper, the English-language daily Today’s Zaman.

The preacher shaking up Turkey — from America*

Fethullah Gulen, a frail 75-year-old Islamic preacher with a gift for oratory, leads an ascetic life in a 10-hectare compound tucked into rolling farmland and woods here, far from the political crisis and international intrigue he is accused of instigating in his native Turkey.

'Everybody reads about Prophet Muhammad'

A nationwide campaign entitled “Everybody reads about him,” which was recently launched by Peygamber Yolu (The Prophet's Path Association) in order to help the Turkish public acquire a broader knowledge of the life of Prophet Muhammad, continues to attract attention.

Kimse Yok Mu reaches out to Syrians in joint project with UNHCR

The Turkish aid organization Kimse Yok Mu is conducting a joint project with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to provide monetary assistance to Syrian refugees in Turkey in an effort to “normalize” their lives as much as possible.