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Anadolu Agency (AA), Turkey
February 13, 2015 Friday
Gulen lobby influences US lawmakers letter on Turkey
Dozens of US House members who received campaign donations from
entities linked to a wanted Turkish preacher, may have signed a letter
critical of Turkey without checking facts.
By Kasim ILERI
WASHINGTON
Some signatories to a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry by U.S.
House members critical of Turkish press freedoms, have received
financial benefits while insufficiently fact-checking claims made in
the letter.
Financial records show many of the signees have received political
donations from entities linked to a movement led by U.S.-based Turkish
preacher Fethullah Gulen.
In the Feb. 2 letter, lawmakers expressed concerns about recent
arrests of media figures in Turkey. It specifically laid emphasis on
proceedings against a Turkish media group linked to Gulen.
"According to multiple press reports, Ekrem Dumanli, the
editor-in-chief of Zaman, a highly circulated daily newspaper in
Turkey and Hidayet Karaca, CEO of Samanyolu Media Group, were arrested
on Dec. 14, 2014, on questionable charges, bringing the total number
of detained media personalities to 29," the letter said.
More than 400 individuals, 150 of whom were linked to Gulen, were
monitored last year by the Turkish government on Twitter, according to
the letter.
Specific emphasis on Gulen-linked media have raised doubts that many
of the co-signers were motivated by political donations to their
campaigns from individuals and foundations linked to Gulen rather than
examining the assertions made in the letter.
Turkish officials have rejected the claims in the letter.
Turkey's EU Affairs Minister Volkan Bozkir, who was on a visit to
Washington last week, told reporters not a single journalist was
detained in Turkey for expressing personal ideas or beliefs. The few
who are currently detained are being held on charges of robbery,
shooting and clashes with security officers.
He stressed the letter didn't contain names of the detained. "They do
not have the names of these 29 press members allegedly detained in
Turkey. Furthermore, the facts in the text are not correct," Bozkir
said.
Eric Harris, press secretary for Rep. Gwen Moore, one of the letter's
co-signers, told The Anadolu Agency the letter was primarily authored
by Arizona Republican Matt Salmon and Missouri Democratic Emanuel
Cleaver.
Harris said the congresswoman's advocacy for freedoms of expression
and the press motivated her to sign the letter.
As with all letters that are drafter in the House, he said there was
an extensive fact-checking process, based on cross checks with
institutions from government agencies and non-governmental
organizations as well as the Congressional Research Service.
"In terms of the specific number in the letter, I would refer you to
the Rep. Salmon's office and Rep. Cleaver's office as they were the
architects of the original text of the letter," said Harris.
The spokesperson also added that his boss' staff trusted the
documentation capability of the main sponsors' office.
"Since we did not write the letter itself, we weren't the one who put
the number down. We trust the guidance account of Rep. Salmon and Rep.
Cleaver; if they did not have the correct number there, I am sure they
would rectify that," he added.
The Anadolu Agency approached more than 70 of the co-signers to the
letter and learned that the congresswoman's office was not alone in
trusting its main sponsors.
Dozens of representatives' offices declined to officially comment on
the letter and referred questions to Salmon and Cleaver. Several
confirmed they did not contribute to writing the text.
A communication director for one of the signatories told AA on the
condition of anonymity that since he supported freedom of press in
Turkey, the representative conceptually agreed with the letter.
He said, however, Salmon's office was in charge of collecting
information about the names and affiliations of press members
allegedly detained in Turkey.
"We looked into the letter once it was sent to our office; we thought
there was something that we would certainly want to support, as it was
in line with our legislative trajectory in the House," the official
said.
He said he was unable to share any document relating to names and
numbers specified in the letter but instead referred our requests for
such information to Salmon's office.
In addition to the apparent lack of proper vetting of the claims made
in the letter, many co-signers also did not make clear why a specific
media group was singled out in the letter.
The letter specified two media figures linked to the Gulen movement
and gave numbers related to the movement, which leaves an impression
that the Gulen lobby played at least some role in drafting the letter
and getting it signed.
Led by Fehtullah Gulen, the Gulen movement has been under scrutiny in
Turkey. Officials linked to the movement are accused of conducting
wiretaps of high-profile figures within the Turkish state as well as
constructing a "parallel state" to overthrow the elected Turkish
government.
The group was recently included in the National Security Strategy of
Turkey as an organization that threatened the national security of the
country. The Turkish government also removed dozens of high-profile
bureaucrats from posts because of their alleged links to Gulen.
The preacher, who lives in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, had his
passport revoked in late January by the Turkish government, who then
informed its U.S. counterparts about the revocation.
A Turkish court also issued an arrest warrant for Gulen and Turkey is
readying documents to apply to Interpol to bring Gulen to justice in
Turkey.
The letter to Kerry was sent in an atmosphere of the tensions between
the Gulen movement and Turkish government, which can also leave the
impression that pro-Gulen links in the U.S. Congress contributed to
the letter's draft and signing.
The Anadolu Agency combed records from the U.S. Federal Election
Committee and found foundations and individuals in the U.S. linked to
Gulen have donated more than $300,000 to political campaigns of dozens
of lawmakers who signed the letter.
Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas was the recipient of the largest amount in
2014 with $92,750. He was followed by Al Green of Texas who received
$67,100; Shelia Jackson Lee of Texas got $14,000, Robert Aderholt of
Alabama was given $24,800 and Jim Bridenstine of Oklahama collected
$13,000.
The records show some donors made regular payments and in some cases
family members of donors made financial contributions to the same
representatives.
Representatives usually receive donations from their own
constituencies for election campaigns, but among the co-signers of the
letter some received campaign donations from Gulen-linked donors who
lived outside of some representatives' districts.
For example, Reps. Cuellar, Green and Aderholt simultaneously received
similar amounts from donors in different states and districts than
where the representatives have a constituency.
The main sponsors of the letter, Reps. Salmon and Cleaver, as well as
dozens of other co-signers, were sponsored by Gulen-linked foundations
in the U.S. for recent visits to Turkey where they met several
Gulen-linked journalists and academics.
Among the co-signers, 22 were sponsored for trips to Turkey in 2013-14
which cost $171,000.
Rep. Salmon, one of the main architects of the letter, Henry Cuellar,
Danny Davis, Mike Honda, and Aaron Schock personally visited Turkey
while other lawmakers sent representatives from their offices.
The Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians, Turkish American
Federation of Midwest, and Foundation of Intercultural Dialogue were
among the Gulen-linked foundations that sponsored the trips.
Among the co-signers of the letter, 47 were Democrat and 41 were Republican.
Many were members of the Greek, Armenian and Israeli caucuses.
Co-signers Jackie Speier, Barbara Lee, Steve Israel, Grace Napolitano,
Scott Garrett, Anna Eshoo, Mike Honda, Zoe Lofgren, Chris Van Hollen,
Alan Lowenthal and Doug LaMalfa were also sponsors of the bills
against Turkey regarding the 1915 events, also known as the Armenian
allegations of "genocide" by the Ottoman Empire during World War I.
The majority of co-signers were from California, Illinois, Ohio and
Texas - states with the most number of Gulen-linked chartered schools.
From: Baghdasarian
February 13, 2015 Friday
Gulen lobby influences US lawmakers letter on Turkey
Dozens of US House members who received campaign donations from
entities linked to a wanted Turkish preacher, may have signed a letter
critical of Turkey without checking facts.
By Kasim ILERI
WASHINGTON
Some signatories to a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry by U.S.
House members critical of Turkish press freedoms, have received
financial benefits while insufficiently fact-checking claims made in
the letter.
Financial records show many of the signees have received political
donations from entities linked to a movement led by U.S.-based Turkish
preacher Fethullah Gulen.
In the Feb. 2 letter, lawmakers expressed concerns about recent
arrests of media figures in Turkey. It specifically laid emphasis on
proceedings against a Turkish media group linked to Gulen.
"According to multiple press reports, Ekrem Dumanli, the
editor-in-chief of Zaman, a highly circulated daily newspaper in
Turkey and Hidayet Karaca, CEO of Samanyolu Media Group, were arrested
on Dec. 14, 2014, on questionable charges, bringing the total number
of detained media personalities to 29," the letter said.
More than 400 individuals, 150 of whom were linked to Gulen, were
monitored last year by the Turkish government on Twitter, according to
the letter.
Specific emphasis on Gulen-linked media have raised doubts that many
of the co-signers were motivated by political donations to their
campaigns from individuals and foundations linked to Gulen rather than
examining the assertions made in the letter.
Turkish officials have rejected the claims in the letter.
Turkey's EU Affairs Minister Volkan Bozkir, who was on a visit to
Washington last week, told reporters not a single journalist was
detained in Turkey for expressing personal ideas or beliefs. The few
who are currently detained are being held on charges of robbery,
shooting and clashes with security officers.
He stressed the letter didn't contain names of the detained. "They do
not have the names of these 29 press members allegedly detained in
Turkey. Furthermore, the facts in the text are not correct," Bozkir
said.
Eric Harris, press secretary for Rep. Gwen Moore, one of the letter's
co-signers, told The Anadolu Agency the letter was primarily authored
by Arizona Republican Matt Salmon and Missouri Democratic Emanuel
Cleaver.
Harris said the congresswoman's advocacy for freedoms of expression
and the press motivated her to sign the letter.
As with all letters that are drafter in the House, he said there was
an extensive fact-checking process, based on cross checks with
institutions from government agencies and non-governmental
organizations as well as the Congressional Research Service.
"In terms of the specific number in the letter, I would refer you to
the Rep. Salmon's office and Rep. Cleaver's office as they were the
architects of the original text of the letter," said Harris.
The spokesperson also added that his boss' staff trusted the
documentation capability of the main sponsors' office.
"Since we did not write the letter itself, we weren't the one who put
the number down. We trust the guidance account of Rep. Salmon and Rep.
Cleaver; if they did not have the correct number there, I am sure they
would rectify that," he added.
The Anadolu Agency approached more than 70 of the co-signers to the
letter and learned that the congresswoman's office was not alone in
trusting its main sponsors.
Dozens of representatives' offices declined to officially comment on
the letter and referred questions to Salmon and Cleaver. Several
confirmed they did not contribute to writing the text.
A communication director for one of the signatories told AA on the
condition of anonymity that since he supported freedom of press in
Turkey, the representative conceptually agreed with the letter.
He said, however, Salmon's office was in charge of collecting
information about the names and affiliations of press members
allegedly detained in Turkey.
"We looked into the letter once it was sent to our office; we thought
there was something that we would certainly want to support, as it was
in line with our legislative trajectory in the House," the official
said.
He said he was unable to share any document relating to names and
numbers specified in the letter but instead referred our requests for
such information to Salmon's office.
In addition to the apparent lack of proper vetting of the claims made
in the letter, many co-signers also did not make clear why a specific
media group was singled out in the letter.
The letter specified two media figures linked to the Gulen movement
and gave numbers related to the movement, which leaves an impression
that the Gulen lobby played at least some role in drafting the letter
and getting it signed.
Led by Fehtullah Gulen, the Gulen movement has been under scrutiny in
Turkey. Officials linked to the movement are accused of conducting
wiretaps of high-profile figures within the Turkish state as well as
constructing a "parallel state" to overthrow the elected Turkish
government.
The group was recently included in the National Security Strategy of
Turkey as an organization that threatened the national security of the
country. The Turkish government also removed dozens of high-profile
bureaucrats from posts because of their alleged links to Gulen.
The preacher, who lives in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, had his
passport revoked in late January by the Turkish government, who then
informed its U.S. counterparts about the revocation.
A Turkish court also issued an arrest warrant for Gulen and Turkey is
readying documents to apply to Interpol to bring Gulen to justice in
Turkey.
The letter to Kerry was sent in an atmosphere of the tensions between
the Gulen movement and Turkish government, which can also leave the
impression that pro-Gulen links in the U.S. Congress contributed to
the letter's draft and signing.
The Anadolu Agency combed records from the U.S. Federal Election
Committee and found foundations and individuals in the U.S. linked to
Gulen have donated more than $300,000 to political campaigns of dozens
of lawmakers who signed the letter.
Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas was the recipient of the largest amount in
2014 with $92,750. He was followed by Al Green of Texas who received
$67,100; Shelia Jackson Lee of Texas got $14,000, Robert Aderholt of
Alabama was given $24,800 and Jim Bridenstine of Oklahama collected
$13,000.
The records show some donors made regular payments and in some cases
family members of donors made financial contributions to the same
representatives.
Representatives usually receive donations from their own
constituencies for election campaigns, but among the co-signers of the
letter some received campaign donations from Gulen-linked donors who
lived outside of some representatives' districts.
For example, Reps. Cuellar, Green and Aderholt simultaneously received
similar amounts from donors in different states and districts than
where the representatives have a constituency.
The main sponsors of the letter, Reps. Salmon and Cleaver, as well as
dozens of other co-signers, were sponsored by Gulen-linked foundations
in the U.S. for recent visits to Turkey where they met several
Gulen-linked journalists and academics.
Among the co-signers, 22 were sponsored for trips to Turkey in 2013-14
which cost $171,000.
Rep. Salmon, one of the main architects of the letter, Henry Cuellar,
Danny Davis, Mike Honda, and Aaron Schock personally visited Turkey
while other lawmakers sent representatives from their offices.
The Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians, Turkish American
Federation of Midwest, and Foundation of Intercultural Dialogue were
among the Gulen-linked foundations that sponsored the trips.
Among the co-signers of the letter, 47 were Democrat and 41 were Republican.
Many were members of the Greek, Armenian and Israeli caucuses.
Co-signers Jackie Speier, Barbara Lee, Steve Israel, Grace Napolitano,
Scott Garrett, Anna Eshoo, Mike Honda, Zoe Lofgren, Chris Van Hollen,
Alan Lowenthal and Doug LaMalfa were also sponsors of the bills
against Turkey regarding the 1915 events, also known as the Armenian
allegations of "genocide" by the Ottoman Empire during World War I.
The majority of co-signers were from California, Illinois, Ohio and
Texas - states with the most number of Gulen-linked chartered schools.
From: Baghdasarian