Does the Gülen Movement seek Political Power in Turkey?

Although, Gulen and the Gulen movement do not seek for power, they threaten the established authoritarian elite regime by educating the population, reaching out to the minorities, helping the poor, and working for the reconciliation. According to Hakan Yavuz, the balance of power is shifting toward a bottom-up conception of modernity and a new vision of secularism.

Yavuz sees Gulen as an agent and representative of this transformation. During most of the republican era of Turkey, both modernity and secularism have been defined by minority elites and have been coerced on majority masses with harsh methods. Again, according to Yavuz, Gülen has played a key role in the transformation of a new understanding of bottom-up modernity, alternative to authoritarian elites’ up-bottom version[1].

Hakan Yavuz goes further and explains why Gulen is a major threat to these authoritarian elites:

“Gulen represents a major threat for these people, because they want to see a backward, radical Islam, in order to justify repression – whereas with Gulen, you do not get that. This angers them even more!

Also, Gulen tries to educate the periphery by teaching them foreign languages and providing scholarships for study in foreign countries. This angers the establishment as well, because they want to control the country and not to share the resources with the rest of the population. There is also a conflict over resources. Gulen was on the side of the poor, while the establishment did not want to see his movement opening up educational opportunities for the marginal sectors of Turkish society. This frustrated militant secularists in Turkey.”