Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç has provided details about the ongoing crackdown on followers of the faith-based Gülen movement, which began after a failed coup in July 2016. According to Tunç, a total of 705,172 individuals have been investigated for terrorism or coup-related charges due to their alleged links to the movement.
The Gülen movement is a faith-based movement inspired by Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen. The Turkish government and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accuse the movement of masterminding the failed coup on July 15, 2016. The movement denies any involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity. As we approach the eighth anniversary of the coup attempt, Tunç provided some figures on Gülen-linked investigations and prosecutions that continue unabated.
Despite multiple rulings from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in favor of Gülen followers who were put in pre-trial detention or convicted on terrorism charges following the coup attempt, the crackdown has not stopped. Tunç said there are currently 13,251 individuals in prison who are in pre-trial detention or convicted of terrorism in Gülen-linked trials. However, tens of thousands of people who were arrested in the post-coup crackdown have been released from prison after serving their sentences. These individuals were convicted of terrorism based on actions such as using a mobile phone application known as ByLock, membership in a labor union or association affiliated with the Gülen movement, having an account at the now-closed Bank Asya, sending their children to Gülen-linked schools, or having subscriptions to Gülen-linked publications. These actions were considered signs of membership in the Gülen movement and used as criminal evidence.
According to ECtHR rulings, the use of ByLock, which was once widely available online and considered a secret tool of communication among supporters of the Gülen movement, does not constitute a reliable piece of evidence or a criminal offense. Tunç also provided some statistics on the trials related to the coup attempt. He said that 289 trials in which defendants were actively involved in the coup attempt have been concluded so far. Of these, the convictions have been upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeals in 206 cases.
In total, 4,891 individuals have been convicted in these trials. Among them, 1,634 received aggravated life sentences, 1,366 were sentenced to life in prison, and 1,891 received sentences of various lengths on coup-related charges. However, Tunç also reported that courts acquitted 2,870 of the defendants in these trials and decided not to hand down any sentences to 964 of them. The coup attempt, which was suppressed overnight, resulted in the death of 253 people and the injury of 2,190 others, according to the minister.
Purges
Regarding the judges and prosecutors who were dismissed from their positions due to their alleged links with the Gülen movement, the Minister stated that 4,006 prosecutors and judges have been dismissed from their positions because of their alleged association with the Gülen group since the attempted coup.
Following the failed coup attempt, the Turkish government declared a state of emergency and initiated a large-scale purge of state institutions under the guise of fighting against the coup. More than 130,000 public employees, as well as 24,706 members of the armed forces, were summarily removed from their positions based on emergency decrees, without any judicial or parliamentary oversight. These decrees alleged their membership in or connections with “terrorist organizations.”
Extradition requests
The minister also spoke about Turkey’s requests for the extradition of Gülen from the US. He said that Turkey has filed seven such requests based on 27 charges, mostly related to the July 15 coup attempt.
The minister said that Turkey has fully provided the US with details of the charges against Gülen. He proudly stated that the files are very detailed and complete.
Although Turkey’s extradition requests meet the criteria for extradition from the US to Turkey, the US Justice Department is holding the file. The minister said that unfortunately, there has been no progress in the extradition for eight years.
Turkey has sent multiple extradition requests to the US government while pursuing a worldwide crackdown on followers of Fethullah Gülen following the coup attempt. US officials have repeatedly stated that although Turkey presented them with a large amount of information about Gülen, the files did not include clear evidence of his involvement in the abortive putsch.
Regarding Turkey’s extradition requests for other Gülen followers overseas, Tunç said that 1,774 such requests have been made to 115 countries. He also stated that 132 followers of Gülen have either been deported or extradited to Turkey. A total of 427 Turkish extradition requests for Gülen followers have been rejected.
Tunç criticized the US and European countries, mainly Germany, for remaining indifferent to Turkey’s extradition requests. He said that they continue to keep terrorists in their own countries, which Turkey regrets to say.
Thousands of followers of Gülen who had to flee Turkey to avoid the crackdown on real and perceived followers have been granted asylum in Western countries. These countries do not recognize the Gülen movement as a terrorist organization and allow its activities within their borders.
Source: Stockholm Center for Freedom
