German government says Gülen movement not involved in any illegal acts

The German government, led by Chancellor Angela Merkel, has said an extensive assessment of the organizations and foundations of Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen’s movement in Germany failed to identify any evidence of illegal activity, daily Zaman reported.

The statement of the outcome of the investigation was issues in response to a parliamentary question.

The question, submitted in the Bundestag by the Left Party, asked about the level of cooperation between the German government and Gülen movement-affiliated organizations in a number of fields, from education to media and intercultural dialogue, Zaman reported on March 21.

The Left Party asked whether the Gülen movement and its followers undermined the basic foundations of the plural and democratic constitution, gender equality, freedom of conscience, separation of powers and freedom of education. “There is no indication showing the Gülen movement is against the plural and democratic Constitution,” the government said in response.

The government also said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who visited Germany one month ago, only shared his point of view about the latest developments in Turkey. The government also rejected the claim that Erdoğan had presented documents about the movement to German officials.

Published on Hurriyet Daily News, 21 March 2014, Friday

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