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Demonizing the Hizmet Movement Through Media in Turkey: Front Covers They Don't Want You to See

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Demonizing the Hizmet Movement Through Media in Turkey: Front Covers They Don't Want You to See DEMONIZING THE HIZMET MOVEMENT THROUGH MEDIA IN TURKEY FRONT COVERS THEY DON’T WANT YOU TO SEE DEMONIZING THE HIZMET MOVEMENT THROUGH MEDIA IN TURKEY: FRONT COVERS THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO SEE APRIL 2015 Dialogue Platform is a non-profit association serving as a platform for dialogue organisations affiliated with the Hizmet Movement in Europe. Hizmet is a civil society grass root movement focusing on dialogue, education and upward social mobility. Inspired by the teachings and work of Mr. Fethullah Gülen, we aim to advance and promote intercultural understanding, dialogical interaction and social cohesion in the society. Dialogue Platform fosters debate and analysis on various issues concerning a peaceful and respectful coexistence in European societies. It aims to make practical contributions to the decision-making processes on relevant developments and issues impacting on community relations in Europe. ©Dialogue Platform. All rights reserved except for downloading, storing and transmitting. This publication can be downloaded at no cost at www.DialoguePlatform.eu DIALOGUE PLATFORM Rue Montoyer 31 Brussels 1000 Belgium www.dialogueplatform.eu [email protected] Tel: +32 (0) 513 81 16 Contents Introductory Remarks ...............................................................................1 Sample of Terms and Language .................................................................2 Sample of Media Front Covers ..................................................................3 Sample of Media Coordination ...............................................................25 Cautionary Conclusion ...........................................................................26 Introductory Remarks In Turkey in 2013, President Erdogan violently crushed the Gezi Park protests, while propagating an “underdog” narrative for himself and his supporters through pro- government media. He claimed the protests were orchestrated by the “international interest lobby” in collaboration with “their domestic partners” (one allegedly being the Koç Group) to topple the Justice and Development Party (‘AKP’) government. This tale was repeated in the pro-government media until it became the defining narrative for much of the Turkish electorate: protesters were “vile”, “traitors”, “enemies of the state” and Erdogan and his government therefore were justified in crushing them. In December 2013, when a corruption probe which implicated several government ministers and Erdoğan’s son went public, Erdogan and pro-government media used a similar strategy to derail investigations. While framing events as planned and executed by a “coalition of foreign powers” through their “domestic pawns”, the AKP government moved swiftly to purge thousands of police officers, civil servants, prosecutors and judges without trial or disciplinary procedure, a self-confessed “witch-hunt”, on the pretext of Hizmet affiliation. This time, instead of the Koç family, the Gulen-inspired Hizmet movement became the useful scapegoat to justify draconian and arbitrary measures. Erdogan claimed that Turkey was, once again, fighting its “second war of independence” against a “blood-sucking virus” and “vampire” that had nested itself within the state apparatus and which could only be “cleansed” by being “vaporized” and “separated into its molecules.” In short, as per Erdogan’s style of politics, a new phantom enemy in the form of Hizmet is being instrumentalized to achieve two outcomes. The first to derail the investigations into ministerial corruption and silence media coverage of it; the second to rid the state of anyone not completely loyal to President Erdogan and to rid the public sphere of dissent or credible alternative viewpoints to those of his own including the Gezi park protestors, the opposition parties, workers unions, the Hizmet movement and of course Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, the first two of which were even banned in Turkey before the Presidential elections of 2013. This booklet has a very modest objection. To provide a glimpse into the consistent coordinated and concerted dehumanization and demonization project against Erdogan’s latest so-called enemy of the state, the Hizmet movement. Beyond this introduction no comment will be provided whatsoever. Instead, you will only be presented with direct translations of what Erdogan, his deputies and the pro-government media have said. As the reader, we only ask that you take the moment to peruse the contents and arrive at your own conclusions. 1 Sample of Terms and Language Terms and language used by President Erdogan on Hizmet and Gulen since December 2013: they are a parallel state, traitors, pawns of a dirty international blood lobby, they are a virus, tumour, blood-sucking leeches, terrorists, raving “Hashashins,” assassins, they work with Mossad, their leader is a spell binder, a false prophet, a bogus scholar, a gang-leader, this is Turkey’s second war of independence, we will enter their lairs/caves, crush them, break them, we will vaporize them, split them into molecules, nationalize their schools, you must work hard and take over their work and organizations, they were going to assassinate my daughter, there is so much more about them you do not know. President Erdogan on Hizmet and Gulen since December 2013 “We get rid of these people. From now on, not even a single member of this parallel group will be able to stay here. It is not possible for them to remain here, to live here and to work here. I am a man of my word and will fulfill my promise. We first removed them from our hostels and the hostels that belong to our city. Our citizens will not let members of this group, of this organiza-tion enter their homes. They have no reason to complain; I am doing exactly what I said before the elections. After all, our prime minister had given orders to all mayors to do whatever is necessary. And I am following in the footsteps of my prime minister. If my prime minister hits with a sledgehammer, I will hit with an iron bar. And I will continue to hit.” Speech by Ali İnci, Mayor of Hendek, July 25, 2014 “Your leader, Feto [Fethullah Gülen], is so tactless as to call the prime minister ‘friend.’ Don’t bite the hand that feeds you, hashashins. It’s become clear that you are hashashins in service of the devil. We will stone you, one and all.” Tweet by Ünsal İnaltekin, head of the Turkish Aviation Board (THK) 2 Sample of Media Front Page The following are a tiny selection from the vast number of front-cover fictitious stories published recently in pro-goverment Turkish newspapers directly demonizing the Hizmet movement. SABAH: 03/02/2015 "WE MUST CLEANSE THE CANCEROUS CELLS [says President Erdogan in reference to Hizmet]" 3 SABAH: 28/02/2014 “THE BIGGESET TREASON OF OUR TIME" "We will annihilate this virus" 4 SABAH: 25/12/2014 "It [i.e. Hizmet] grew like tumour in the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK)." 5 AKSAM: 05/03/2014 “Great fear in the Supreme Electoral Council PARALLEL VIRUS" 6 AKSAM: 09/04/2014 “OUR NATION HAS ORDERED US TO CLEANSE IT [I.E. HIZMET]” 7 STAR: 12/05/2014 “WE WILL SPLIT THEM [I.E. HIZMET] INTO THEIR MOLECULES The parallel structure that has infiltrated the state is like foul water in pure milk said Prime Minister Erdogan. ‘We will sterilise it by either boiling them or by splitting them into their molecules’ he said.” 8 : 12/05/2014 “IF THIS IS A WITCH-HUNT, IT IS A WITCH-HUNT Prime Minister Erdogan described the Gulen movement as ‘foul water mixed in milk’ saying ‘if needs be, we will sterilise it by splitting them into their molecules’.” 9 STAR: 12/05/2014 "GULEN WAS GOING TO BE FÜHRER 'Gulen would have been the führer of Turkey if 17/25 December attempts [corruption probes] had been successful. Tens of thousands of people would have been detained' said Yakup Kose." 10 DAILY SABAH: 28/11/2014 English Sabah: 28/11/14: "GULEN WANTED TO SET UP AN ISLAMIC STATE [IN TURKEY]" SABAH: 27/11/2014 Turkish Sabah 27/11/14" "THE PARALLEL [I.E. HIZMET] IS BEING CONTROLLED BY MOSSAD AND CIA" 11 TAKVIM: 13/12/2014 “THE PARALELS [I.E. HIZMET ] ARE THE PAWN OF ISRAEL" 12 STAR: 01/02/2015 “THEY [I.E. HIZMET] ARE COLLOBORATING WITH MOSSAD This organization [i.e. Hizmet] attacked to the national unity of Turkey. I asked those who sincerely support them to see with whom they are collaborating. Shame on those who still do not recognise that they [i.e. Hizmet] are collaborating with MOSSAD.” 13 SABAH: 09/11/2014 "THE TREACHEROUS PARALLEL [I.E. HIZMET] LOBBY IN THE EU The Minister of Justice Bozdag: Some people of Gulen are lobbying against Turkey in parliaments like the terrorist organisations DHKPC and PKK." 14 AKSAM: 08/10/2014 "THE CHRISTIAN PARALLEL'S [I.E. HIZMET] IN THE ZIRVE MURDER The 2006 assassination of Father Santoro & the 2007 Zirve Publishing House massacre was committed by the Parallel [i.e. Hizmet] and the Missionaries." "A Today’s Zaman columnist took a leading role in the murders." 15 AKSAM: 14/04/2014 "THE PARALLEL'S [I.E. HIZMET'S] ARMED LEG IS CALLED: OTUKEN" "Otuken* was used in the Gezi park protests as well" [*Otuken is the mythical capital of the Turks. This statement implies that the Hizmet is a terrorist organisation like Turkey’s gladio which adopted the name Ergenekon, which is similarly the mythical homeland of Turks] 16 STAR: 11/02/2015 "WORLD IMAMS" [Passport photos of people, who allegedly work as country imams of the Hizmet movement. There is a country name under each photo] 18 a HBR 29/04/2014 "GERMANY’S IMAM" [meaning that Mr. Gauck Hizmet's leader in Germany] “HITLER-MINDED HANS Many criticise the Hitler-minded Gauck who forgets the oppression and attacks against Muslims, especially Turks, in Germany yet attempts to give lessons to Turkey on human rights and democracy."* Yeni Akit 30/04/2014 "Gauck, the president of Germany, made insolent statements in Turkey despite numerous human rights violations in his country.” * During his visit to Turkey, German President Joachim Gauck said in Ankara that he is "horrified" at negative developments in Turkey, criticizing the government for censoring the Internet, controlling the judiciary and granting broad powers to a spy agency.
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