Turkish Olympiads and Sinan Çetin

Nazlı Ilıcak

It is impossible for one watching the Turkish Olympiads not be moved by it. Students coming from different parts of the world are signing songs and reciting poems in Turkish.

They have confidence in themselves and believe they attend good schools. They look at their future with hope. They build the bridges that will link Turkey to the rest of the world. It is necessary to look at [film] producer Sinan Çetin’s remarks about Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who pioneered educational activities all around the world, from this perspective. Çetin, who spoke at the song final of the Turkish Olympiads on Tuesday, praised and thanked Gülen for demonstrating an example of nationalism which is constructive and embraces all. He faced many insulting remarks on social media sites over his statements about Gülen. Some reckless people attacked him, calling him a “brownnoser.” This kind of labeling has become fashionable, but what benefit can Çetin draw from Gülen?

Published on Today's Zaman, 23 June 2011