Sir, – The use of the FETO (Fethullah Gülen Terror Organisation) term by the Turkish ambassador (August 8th) in the description of the secular philosophy promoted by the exiled cleric and former imam is a clear demonstration that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has issued instructions to ratchet up the demonisation of this movement.
Erdogan has not hidden his desire for a more theocratic state in Turkey and has taken the opportunity afforded by the misguided, and illegal, coup attempt to purge Turkish civil society of these secularists.
The US should not bow to any pressure to extradite Fethullah Gülen and the EU should reconsider Turkey’s application for EU membership in light of the draconian response to the coup. We have seen the result of enforced theocracy in the region: decades of conflict.
What is needed more than ever now are stable secular states in which all religious beliefs are protected under law. This does not seem to fit Erdogan’s current agenda. – Yours, etc,
BARRY WALSH,
Blackrock,
Cork.