Gülenist threatens Daily Sabah with lawsuit in Belgium
Bahattin Koçak, head of the Belgian-Turkish Friendship Association (Beltud), which is linked to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), attended a Belgian TV show for the second time in the past week and demanded a correction from Daily Sabah for reporting his affiliation with FETÖ, threatening that if his demand is not met, he may consider taking legal action.
In his second appearance on De Afspraak, a program aired on Belgian state-run TV station Canvas, Koçak said he is not in favor of the assimilation of Turkish people, but refrained from talking about the points he made on the previous show. During the program, he made several absurd suggestions such as stopping the activities of Turkey's Presidency of Religious Affairs (DİB) - better known as Diyanet -adjusting satellites to block Turkey-based TV stations and prohibiting voting so the following Belgian-Turkish generations would have weaker links to their motherland, Turkey.
Attending the television program with his lawyer Walter Van Steenbrugge on Tuesday, Koçak reminded that a member of the Brussels-based Gülenist umbrella organization FEDACTIO is wanted by Turkey with a reward of 400,000 euros. Stating that Belgian politicians do not go beyond rhetoric against the Turkish government, Koçak called on political figures to lend support to Gülenists in Belgium.
Following his call, Gerolf Annemans - far-right Flemish member of the European Parliament - extended his support to Koçak. Annemans is known for his anti-Islam and anti-immigration statements. He previously said he considers Islam as a threat to Europe.
Stories of Daily Sabah were shown on the program which had a digital decoration that read "Turkish Threat." Flemish broadcasting channel's website, deRedactie, drew attention to stories published by Daily Sabah on Koçak and Belgian State Minister Zuhal Demir, who drew harsh criticisms for participating in pro-PKK activities.
In the first program he attended, Koçak remarked that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made Turks living in Belgium feel connected to their Turkish identity again and suggested some measures to prevent the accentuation of Turkishness. "Over the last couple of years, the Turks living here started to develop closer bonds to Turkey. I have always pointed out that this issue needs to be analyzed. Why is this happening? What did we do wrong? ... Erdoğan made them feel their Turkish identity again. ... Turks in Belgium take a remarkably close interest in Turkey and we have to do something about this. Why have we tolerated the influence of Turkey for such a long time?" he said.
Koçak also added that people with dual citizenship can be forced to vote in one country only. "Of course, it can be banned so that the future generations of Turks living here can better adapt to this country."
In his second appearance on De Afspraak, a program aired on Belgian state-run TV station Canvas, Koçak said he is not in favor of the assimilation of Turkish people, but refrained from talking about the points he made on the previous show. During the program, he made several absurd suggestions such as stopping the activities of Turkey's Presidency of Religious Affairs (DİB) - better known as Diyanet -adjusting satellites to block Turkey-based TV stations and prohibiting voting so the following Belgian-Turkish generations would have weaker links to their motherland, Turkey.
Attending the television program with his lawyer Walter Van Steenbrugge on Tuesday, Koçak reminded that a member of the Brussels-based Gülenist umbrella organization FEDACTIO is wanted by Turkey with a reward of 400,000 euros. Stating that Belgian politicians do not go beyond rhetoric against the Turkish government, Koçak called on political figures to lend support to Gülenists in Belgium.
Following his call, Gerolf Annemans - far-right Flemish member of the European Parliament - extended his support to Koçak. Annemans is known for his anti-Islam and anti-immigration statements. He previously said he considers Islam as a threat to Europe.
Stories of Daily Sabah were shown on the program which had a digital decoration that read "Turkish Threat." Flemish broadcasting channel's website, deRedactie, drew attention to stories published by Daily Sabah on Koçak and Belgian State Minister Zuhal Demir, who drew harsh criticisms for participating in pro-PKK activities.
In the first program he attended, Koçak remarked that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made Turks living in Belgium feel connected to their Turkish identity again and suggested some measures to prevent the accentuation of Turkishness. "Over the last couple of years, the Turks living here started to develop closer bonds to Turkey. I have always pointed out that this issue needs to be analyzed. Why is this happening? What did we do wrong? ... Erdoğan made them feel their Turkish identity again. ... Turks in Belgium take a remarkably close interest in Turkey and we have to do something about this. Why have we tolerated the influence of Turkey for such a long time?" he said.
Koçak also added that people with dual citizenship can be forced to vote in one country only. "Of course, it can be banned so that the future generations of Turks living here can better adapt to this country."
Last Update: April 27, 2017 01:46