Once a close ally of Prime Minister Erdogan, Fetullah Gulen has been a force that moved in the background, without making waves, who successfully ensured the steady and long tenure of the Turkish premier.
Now however, Fetullah Gulen is becoming a force to be reckoned with, at least insofar as the recent corruption investigation on the top policians in the Prime Minister's administration is revealing itself to be.
Although Fetullah Gulen is US based, his allegiance for years rested with Erdogan, and his support of the AKP was instrumental, some say, in the Prime Mnister' successful win of a second term. Gulen's geographical location however, is now being used by Erdogan as proof that Gulen is a puppet of a Western power which intends to bring him down.
When a complicated and far reaching investigation hits your cabinet and your own office as severely as the current one is toward Erodgan's administration, the only way out is to cry foreign conspiracy. But is Erdogan completely wrong?
In all this, something important is being overlooked. Why has Gulen turned on Erdogan? Some of the animus between the two stems from the AKP's own turning against its former supporters. One of the most important measure, which may have provoked Gulen to seek to undermine Erdogan and his party is the fact that the Prime Minister had announced a plan to ban private schools, all of them under the supervision and control of Gulen.
The measure in fact, was aimed squarely at Gulen, and might have had to do with the fact that Erdogan feared that the students attending the schools might be converted to the moderate brand of Islam taught and promoted at Gulen's schools.
Although Erdogan has always cultivated the image of the inclusive, progressive, forward thinking premier who has happily entered the EU zone and undertaken what on the outside appears to be a 'modernization' of Turkey through his controversial construction projects, most people have long realized that he follows his strict Islamic beliefs, and some even say that he has long term ambitions to bring Turkey to a state of shari'a or into a full Islamic Republic. That he is no moderate has long been recognized by those who have seen his administration increasingly seek measures that have to do with strict enforcement of Islamic faith.
But Gulen has long had powerful ties to the judiciary and police, which could explain the swift purge of 500+ police officers and officials by Erdogan, and the call for the removal of certain judges in the fallout of the corruption investigation. And the shadowy cleric is making good use of those connections.
Gulen is an Imam after all, who teaches a Hanafi version of Islam. He is a strong proponent of interfaith dialogue. (for more on Gulen follow this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fethullah_Gülen
Although Gulen's movement is in some aspects modern, one should not confuse it for a 'reformist' or 'progressive' movement. Many see it instead as a cult, and the Prime Minister himself, begrudging its far reaching powers, called it a "state within a state".
The fact that Gulen's group inner workings are completely secret does not helps matter any. But the truth remains that almost 13 million people follow Gulen faithfully, with 3 million being 'adepts' in a sense, or closely tied to the network.
Although Gulen lives in the US in exile, his reach is powerful and steady. Erdogan has tried, even recently, to have Gulen return to Turkey, but Gulen steadfastly refuses each and every overture. Many suspect that Erdogan might want to bring Gulen to Turkey to entrap him and try to curb his power.
Meanwhile, from his Pennsylvania home, Gulen directs and expands his ever growing network. Hundreds of schools have been opened in Asia and Africa just in the past few years.
At this point, it is too early to tell what the outcome of the investigation will be. Erdogan may well be able to quash both his opponents' ambitions and Gulen's revenge, if the investigation turns out to be the latter. But in the end, Erdogan cannot dismiss his opponents entirely. The more he fights back, the closer the noose may tighten. As far as the general population is concerned, the charges of corruption have laid bare Erdogan's sweeping ambitions.
But if the only true opposition to Erdogan's power is from Gulen's followers, and the investigation is unmasked as just a revenge plot, the result might be an even greater consolidation of power for the Prime MInister. His party, the AKP, does have a solid base of support in Turkey, and more importantly, Erdogan has skillfully diminished the power of the military and changed the constitution to protect himself from any challenge.
Op-Ed
Source : France 24/ 12.29.13
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