Journalist Karaca laments ongoing acts of tyranny in Turkey in letter

Samanyolu Broadcasting Group top executive Hidayet Karaca, who was arrested in a government-backed operation launched on Dec. 14 last year, along with dozens of others, penned a letter from his prison cell in Silivri Prison in which he talked about "acts of tyranny" continuing in Turkey and how the perpetrators of these actions will have to account for them.

Karaca's letter was published by the Zaman daily on Thursday.

In his letter, Karaca said Turkey has been witnessing an unprecedented atmosphere of oppression and tyranny over the past several years when even innocent children are treated as terrorists and educational institutions are raided by hundreds of police officers on terrorism charges.

He said at a time of increased terrorism in the country, state officials are ordering raids of educational institutions from kindergartens to universities.

Karaca was referring to ongoing police raids on Gülen-inspired schools across the country. The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and then-Prime Minister and current President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan launched a battle against the faith-based Gülen or Hizmet movement following the eruption of a corruption scandal in late 2013 in which Erdoğan's close circle was implicated. Erdoğan dubbed the probe a coup attempt by the Gülen movement, inspired by Turkish-Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, to topple his government despite a strong denial from the movement and lack of any evidence to this effect.

"The picture is very clear. History writes this, too. When those who are part of this tyranny wake up, they will say, 'Oh my God, we were mistaken,' but it will in vain," Karaca wrote.

The journalist said he would continue to live in jail if this is his fate and has no worries to this effect, but he said those who are behind this tyranny will have to account for their actions before both the law and God.

Published on Today's Zaman, 27 August 2015, Thursday