The conscience of the government

Nedim Hazar

Deputy prime minister and government spokesman Bülent Arınç's recent statement was an example of how politicians can twist the facts to suit their interests.

In the wake of [the government's] discrimination [against schools affiliated with the faith-based Hizmet movement] in the list of planned incentives for private schools, Arınç said, "What we are doing has nothing to do with being like the gestapo; we are going to act within the limits of the law." Excuse me, but this statement sounded baseless.

It cannot be explained using the law when you order a road to be constructed in the middle of the courtyard of a school, [as it was reported in the media] or have [the municipal employees] take down the billboards of these schools. I believe the law was not violated to this extent even during the coup periods. Arınç was only right when he said that a government should not allow the existence of a "parallel structure." Those responsible should be identified. But is it fair to conduct the largest purge in the country's history based on an [unsubstantiated] claim? We used to know Arınç to have a political conscience. Is he now comfortable with being on the side of those committing persecution?

Published on Today's Zaman, 08 September 2014, Monday