Turkish officials condemned a report of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), which targeted Türkiye’s fight against the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) on Sunday, saying the legitimization of the terrorist group led to the EU becoming a propaganda ground for it.
“I condemn the ratification of the report prepared by a British lawmaker and which targets our country’s legitimate fight against putschist terrorists in the PACE,” Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said on social media.
“The mission of PACE is not to legitimize terrorists but to strengthen democracies,” he added.
Similarly, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said the report is a “disgrace to democracy.”
The assembly last week expressed concern about what it claimed was “Türkiye’s use of some transnational repression tools, particularly following the July 2016 coup attempt” and its pursuit of FETÖ members.
FETÖ orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, in Türkiye, in which 251 people were killed and 2,734 injured.
Türkiye accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state by infiltrating Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
Despite Türkiye’s extradition requests and bilateral legal agreements, many FETÖ members still freely enjoy their lives in different countries around the world. In the aftermath of the July 15, 2016 coup attempt, Türkiye has sped up extradition processes for members of FETÖ abroad.
“These delusions, which are put forward under the guise of freedom, are not acceptable. On July 15, our nation taught the world a lesson in human rights and democracy with its struggle against coup plotters. Those who attempted the coup gave an account before an independent and impartial judiciary, and they continue to do so. Legal processes and extradition requests regarding those who fled abroad continue,” Tunç reminded.
He added that the British lawmaker supported terrorists that are against democracy and human rights instead of supporting freedom and democracy.
Moreover, Ömer Çelik, the spokesperson for Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), said on the same day that Ankara rejected the report promoting FETÖ’s theses and accusing Türkiye while he criticized the term used by the EU as “Gülen Movement,” underlining it is a terrorist group and not a movement.
“Trying to legitimize such a bloody terrorist organization as if it were still a civilian movement causes the PACE to become a propaganda ground for terrorist organizations,” Çelik highlighted.
