Turkey orders 700 arrested for Gülen's group links

The purge continues. Turkish police launched an operation on Tuesday to arrest more than 700 people - including officials and military - for allegedly maintaining links with the movement of Islamist preacher Fethullah Gülen (FETÖ) who, according to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was responsible for orchestrating the failed military coup attempt of July 15, 2016.
It was also in 2016 when the Turkish leader officially designated the movement of cleric Fethullah Gülen as a terrorist group and announced that he would pursue its members, whom he has repeatedly denounced for "conspiring" to overthrow him. The last movement of the Turkish president's tokens has once again focused on this movement.  Simultaneous raids have taken place in at least 43 provinces in recent hours, according to the Turkish news channel NTV.  These raids have been ordered by different courts and are directed at both military and civil servants.
The Public Prosecutor's Office has launched arrest warrants for 228 people suspected of supporting cleric Gülen. Meanwhile, the Prosecutor General's Office in the seaside city of Izmir has ordered the arrest of at least 101 serving officers and 56 former soldiers who had retired, resigned or been dismissed.  
 

Another operation is directed against 71 employees of the Ministry of Justice and against 201 members of the Armed Forces, most of whom have the status of non-commissioned officers, 101 of whom are active. However, the most significant arrest warrant relates to the alleged rigging of an examination, carried out in 2009, to access to certain positions in the Police. At least 467 people are accused of having taken part in this scam and the authorities have ordered their arrest.  Simultaneous operations were then launched in 67 provinces under the coordination of the General Directorate for Combating Smuggling and Organized Crime (KOM).
Following the July 2016 coup attempt, Ankara has investigated more than 130,000 public officials and ordered the preventive detention of nearly 50,000 people.  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his political party have repeatedly accused Gülen's movement of being behind the military coup that took place four years ago, a fact that Gülen firmly denies. The Turkish opposition considers the events of the night of 15 July to have been a "planned coup" aimed at liquidating opposition soldiers and members of civil society organisations.
Since then, the Turkish authorities have regularly launched arrest campaigns under the pretext of nullifying the community of Gülen, which is paradoxical because, over the past decade, it was an alliance between this movement and Erdogan's party (AKP) that enabled the preacher's supporters to gain access to numerous positions in the administration. 
This new wave of arrests has coincided with the resumed hearing in Istanbul tomorrow of the judicial cases of 11 human rights defenders, Amnesty International said on Tuesday. The defendants include former Amnesty Turkey President Taner Kılıç, his former director Idil Eser and several other members of Amnesty Turkey.
"The difficult situation of these activists shows that Turkey has become a country where defending other people's freedoms can cost your own freedom and where the fight for human rights is criminalised. This sentence is a litmus test for Turkey's justice system; we demand an end to this long-running saga of injustice now," said Marie Struthers, Amnesty International's Director for Europe.
"From the moment they were arrested, it was clear that this was a politically motivated prosecution aimed at silencing independent civil society within Turkey. After months in prison and years in the courts, and with no credible evidence presented to justify the charges against them, any sentence other than a full acquittal for the 11 activists would be a scandal," Amnesty International said in a press release.
The purging of thousands of people in Turkey has increased following the 2016 coup attempt. The consequences of this repression have led to the closure of at least 1,300 NGOs and 180 media companies, as well as the dismissal and detention of more than 130,000 officials.  Fear has led Erdogan not to stand idly by and once again place Fethullah Gülen in the spotlight. 
 

Otra de las operaciones está dirigida contra 71 empleados del Ministerio de Justicia y contra 201 miembros de las Fuerzas Armadas, la mayoría con rango de suboficiales, 101 de ellos en activo. Sin embargo, la orden de arresto más importante está relacionada con el supuesto amaño de un examen, realizado en 2009, para acceder a determinados cargos en la Policía. Al menos 467 personas están acusadas de haber participado en este engaño, por lo que las autoridades han ordenado su detención.  Acto seguido, se iniciaron operaciones simultáneas en 67 provincias bajo la coordinación de la Dirección General de Lucha contra el Contrabando y la Delincuencia Organizada (KOM).

Tras el golpe de Estado de julio de 2016, Ankara ha investigado a más de 130.000 funcionarios públicos y ha ordenado la detención preventiva de cerca de 50.000 personas.  El presidente turco, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, y su partido han acusado en reiteradas ocasiones al movimiento de Gülen de estar detrás del golpe militar que tuvo lugar hace cuatro años, algo que éste último niega firmemente. La oposición de Turquía considera que los eventos de la noche del 15 de julio fueron un “golpe planeado” destinado a liquidar a los soldados de la oposición y a los miembros de las organizaciones de la sociedad civil. 

Desde entonces las autoridades tucas lanzan regularmente campañas de arresto con el pretexto de anular a la comunidad de Gülen, lo que es paradójico ya que, durante la pasada década, la alianza entre este movimiento y el partido de Erdogan (AKP) fue la que permitió a los seguidores del predicador acceder a numerosos cargos en la Administración. 

Esta nueva oleada de detenciones ha coincidido con la vista que se reanudará mañana en Estambul en la que se espera que se dicte sentencia en las causas judiciales de 11 defensores de los Derechos Humanos, según ha informado este martes Amnistía Internacional. Entre los acusados figuran el expresidente de Amnistía Turquía, Taner Kılıç; su exdirectora, Idil Eser, y varios miembros más de Amnistía Turquía.
“La difícil situación de estos y estas activistas muestra que Turquía se ha convertido en un país donde defender las libertades de otras personas puede costarte tu propia libertad y donde se criminaliza la lucha por los Derechos Humanos. Esta sentencia es una prueba de fuego para el sistema de justicia de Turquía; exigimos que se ponga fin ya a esta prolongada saga de injusticias”, ha lamentado Marie Struthers, directora de Amnistía Internacional para Europa. 

“Desde el momento en que fueron detenidos, quedó claro que se trataba de un enjuiciamiento de motivación política encaminado a silenciar a la sociedad civil independiente dentro de Turquía. Tras meses en prisión y años ante los tribunales, y sin que se haya presentado ninguna prueba creíble para justificar los cargos formulados contra ellos, cualquier sentencia que no sea la absolución total para los 11 activistas sería un escándalo”, ha añadido, según ha informado Amnistía Internacional a través de un comunicado de prensa. 

La purga contra miles de personas en Turquía no cesa, sino que se ha incrementado tras el golpe de Estado de 2016. Las consecuencias de esta represión han provocado el cierre de al menos 1.300 ONG y 180 medios de comunicación, así como el despido y la detención de más de 130.000 funcionarios.  El miedo ha llevado a Erdogan a no quedarse de brazos cruzados y a colocar, una vez más, a Fethullah Gülen en el centro de todas las miradas.