Gulenists start lobbying again
Supporters of exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen have started lobbying again after their main lobbying firm folded in 2018. The National Council On Civil Advocacy and its lobbyist Bilal Eksili registered effective Sept. 1, 2019, to lobby on “human rights, democracy, freedom of expression and religion, the rule of law, the protection of private enterprise and social justice.” The council’s lobbying registration lists as its Washington address the headquarters of the Rumi Forum, whose honorary chairman is Gulen.
Playing victim is what the Gulenists do (poorly)
Eksili previously ran the Washington Diplomacy Group, which represented the pro-Gulenist umbrella group Alliance for Shared Values as well as affiliated organizations Bay Area Cultural Connections, Raindrop Turkish House, Scioto Educational Foundation, Turkish American Society of Missouri and Huddled Masses before shutting down in July 2018. Eksili did not respond to a request for comment. He has come under fire by the media in Turkey, where Gulen is accused of masterminding the failed 2016 coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Eksili has touted his meetings with US political figures in a photo gallery on his website, including multiple photos with Vice President Mike Pence.
UPDATE
Al-Monitor first reported in Wednesday’s midweek newsletter that supporters of exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen had once again registered to lobby on human rights issues in Turkey, which blames Gulen for a failed coup in 2016. Now newly disclosed activity logs reveal that the National Council on Civil Advocacy spent $10,000 on in-house lobbying in both the third and fourth quarters of 2019. In the last three months of the year, the group lobbied Congress regarding “proposals to address violations of human rights, the rule of law and civil rights by the government of Turkey,” including a bill to provide support to “prisoners of conscience and politically motivated prisoners” in the country (the bill includes a section on Enes Kanter, an NBA athlete and outspoken critic of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who faces arrest if he returns to Turkey). The group’s lobbyist, Bilal Eksili, also lobbied on a bill focusing on efforts by foreign governments to use Interpol “for political and unlawful purposes.” Eksili’s group’s address is the same as the Rumi Forum, which counts Gulen as its honorary chairman.
WHY SHOULD WE BE SURPISED THAT ENES IS NOW TRYING TO ESTABLISH CHARTER SCHOOLS IN OKLAHOMA CITY?
https://www.readfrontier.org/stories/former-thunder-player-seeks-to-open-charter-school-in-oklahoma-city/
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