Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has added a new dehumanization term in his collection of hate speeches by labeling Gülen movement as “tumor.”
Speaking at a press conference in Ankara with Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome, Erdogan said that “Ethiopia is our friend who sees the criminal face of FETO (a derogatory term invented by Erdogan to label Gülen movement after gigantic Dec. 17/25, 2013 graft scandal), which poses a great threat to humanity. In this regard, we are taking steps within the alliance. I would like to express this point in particular. After the July 15 coup attempt, Ethiopia was one of the first countries to explain its support and solidarity to us.”
During his speech at joint press conference Ethiopian President Teshome has pledged to transfer schools allegedly linked to Hizmet movement to Erdogan’s recently established apparatus, Maarif Foundation. Erdogan has also pledged more Turkish investment to Ethiopia.
Turkey survived a military coup attempt on July 15, 2016 that killed over 240 people. Immediately after the putsch, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government along with President Erdoğan pinned the blame on the Gülen movement, inspired by US-based Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen. The movement has categorically denied the accusations.
Over 135,000 people, including thousands within the military, have been purged due to their alleged connection to the Gülen movement since the coup attempt. Furthermore, as of Feb. 7, 2017, over 90.870 people were detained and 44.524 people were arrested due to their alleged links to the Gülen movement.
