Hello? Pfft!

Cüneyt Özdemir, Radikal

All right, I will just admit it, I was threatened a short while ago. I was asked to “publicly slam the parallels” [referring to the "parallel state," a term often used by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in reference to the Hizmet movement] by a columnist at a daily newspaper.

The columnist at the other end of the phone told me that there are case files [to be investigated] about me and that he has seen them in person. He threatened me politely, telling me I would have a hard time if these files were revealed to the public. After he realized that I do not even care and that I am determined to remain neutral, he said that my name is listed in a report drafted by the Committee of Inspection of the Prime Minister's Office. I asked, “How am I involved?” He said, “The report says the Hizmet movement has started to control you. I have seen the report. … You should write about that parallel structure [in the state] or…” he finished. “Or…” I said. I saw what he meant by “or…” the other day. A pro-government daily has started to write about random things they happen to hear about me.

Publıshed on Today's Zaman, 19 February 2014, Wednesday

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