Gulen Movement of Turkey
Recently, Turkey witnessed a bloody coup that saw many people killed and more than 1,400 people wounded. A faction of the army attempted coup overnight and said that they had seized power to protect the democracy from President Erdogan’s misrule. However, security forces foiled the coup attempt and arrested some 6,000 people including high profile people. The government had put the blame on Fethullah Gulen and his followers. Here are some important Q+A:
What is the history of military coups in Turkey?
The Turkish army sees itself as the protector of secularism and democracy in Turkey. It has historically intervened in the politics and has staged four coups since 1960. In recent times, the military and the President Erdogan’s AK Party had differences over the brand of political Islamism followed by the latter.
What is Gulen movement?
The Gulen movement is an Islamic religious and social movement in Turkey well organised by a community of people and not a political party. The movement is named after US-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen who is a spiritual leader and is considered as Turkey’s second most powerful man. The movement is known in Turkey as Hizmet or service.
Who is Gulen?
Fethullah Gulen is a Muslim religious leader born and brought up in Turkey. He preaches an inclusive branch of Sunni Islam that focuses on cooperation, tolerance, modernity as compatible with Islam and importance of education apart from the education imparted in the religious schools.
What is the ideology of the movement?
The ideology promoted by the movement is a tolerant Islam which places its emphasis on altruism, modesty, hard work and education. Though Fethullah Gulen lives in a country estate in Pennsylvania, US, many schools are being run by the movement supporters all over Turkey and the world. The movement is identical with the schools it runs. The schools places emphasize on math and science education and prescribe a strong Western Curriculum. Gulenists believe in secular democracy possess progressive views on many social issues. For example, boys and girls are girls are given education on the same footing in the Gulen schools.
The movement has a huge support base in Turkey possibly in millions and its supporters are believed to hold influential positions in the government run institutions like police, secret service and even in Turkish President Erdogan’s AK Party. According to some, the main aim of the movement is to transform Turkey away from secularism. Gulen claims that he is focussing more of faith and morality rather than politics. Both the president Erdogan and Gulen portray themselves to be pious muslims in opposition to secularism. But the ultimate aim of the movement is unclear. In the wake of the military coup of 1980, Gulen was arrested and eventually got released. From around 2000, he is living in US, where he is undergoing medical treatment.
What is the genesis of the movement?
The movement gained popularity from Gulen’s propaganda that young turks had lost their way and that education was the best response to the problems the turks faced. This attracted a number of middle class people to follow him. The followers of the movement slowly increased and many started to take up employment inside the government organizations.
Who is responsible for the failed coup attempt?
Gulen and his followers have denied their involvement in the failed coup and has blamed that the president Erdogan himself has staged the coup to crush the movement as many Gulenists were arrested following the coup attempt. In May 2016, Turkey made a formal announcement that the Gulen movement is a terrorist organization. President Erdogan fears that the “Gulen-Israel axis” is plotting against him. But sceptics argue that unlike the national police, the Turkish military is not dominated by Gulenists. Who was responsible for the coup remains unclear with each party accusing the other.
What is the importance of Turkey for international powers?
Turkey is an important member of the NATO and seen as a key player in the Syrian conflict. For EU, Turkey is an important stakeholder to solve the migrant crisis. So, the international powers have appealed for calm and to respect the domestic institutions of Turkey.
