Turkish NGO Denies Links to Terror

[geovalin]

The Mekong Dialogue Institute (MDI), a Turkish NGO based in Phnom Penh, on Monday denied any links to terrorism, although the organization was inspired by Fethullah Gulen, the man accused by the Turkish government of being behind last month’s failed coup in Turkey. Hamza Kissac, director of the public relations department at MDI, wrote to Khmer Times saying that Mr. Gulen was the source of inspiration when MDI was created and his institute had the responsibility to share Mr. Gulen’s point of view.
 

“As he is our source of inspiration when we established our Mekong Dialogue Institute, it is our duty to share Mr. Gulen’s opinion that he rejects any links to the failed coup in Turkey last month,” wrote Mr. Kissac. He added that Mr. Gulen was a well-known intellectual and Islamic preacher who has received many peace awards from the international community. Mr. Gulen has also been acknowledged by Time and Foreign Policy magazines, he said.
 

In an effort to show that MDI and Mr. Gulen did not have any links to terrorist organizations, Mr. Kissac shared the op-ed written by Mr. Gulen and published in the French newspaper Le Monde last week. In the article, Mr. Gulen said he condemned the coup and urged the government to set up an international investigation because he thinks the current Turkish court has been politicized by the government, making the current judiciary no longer independent.

 

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