Magnolia Science Academy - A Gulen Charter School: Magnolia Science Academy links to Gulen - Capricio...

Magnolia Science Academy - A Gulen Charter School: Magnolia Science Academy links to Gulen - Capricio...: We have given several examples of links to Gulen and the Magnolia Schools.  Besides the fact many of the teachers have taught at other &quot...

Gulen Albuquerque School of Excellence New Mexico ...

Gulen Charter Schools in the USA: Gulen Albuquerque School of Excellence New Mexico ...: Gulen Albuquerque School of Excellence Racial Slurs from Gulen Fraud on Vimeo . ALBUQUERQUE) – Offensive behavior in an Albuquerque cla...

Former Gulen "minion" aka member of Gulen Movement (Hizmet) speaks about Gulen blackmail, bribes

Gulen Minion their normal way of doing business is to bribe, blackmail, lie, cajole, play victim, be hospitable, etc., anything it takes to reach their end result which is more share of power for the Gulen Networks.

Gulen's Minions live for 1 thing and that is to serve their evil dictator Gulen.

Former Gulen member speaks out about the bribes and blackmails of the movement

FORMER GULENIST CLAIMS DONATIONS USED FOR BRIBING BUREAUCRATS Daily Sabah Updated : 21.12.2014 17:10:41 Published : 21.12.2014 16:39:17 Former Gulenist claims donations used for bribing bureaucratsISTANBUL — The latest in a series of allegations targeting the Gülen movement has come from former general manager of Gülen movement-affiliated Daily Zaman, Mehmet Arslan, who has recently claimed that some of the donations raised by the movement have been used to buy the patronage of bureaucrats. Adding to the harsh accusations the group has already faced regarding their offenses, Mehmet Arslan, a former Gülenist who parted ways with the movement after being affiliated with them for 25 years, spoke about the accusations of theft against them. Arslan claimed that some of the money being collected from businesspeople, civil servants and others by the movement was being used to buy favors from bureaucrats. According to Arslan, the movement bribes bureaucrats in order to facilitate the activities they want to carry out. Arslan said he had been a committed Gülenist before he decided to part ways with the movement. He said he had witnessed how they invest donations on repurchase, gave salaries to top-level officials and treated them to extravagant presents under the name of establishing schools abroad. "Ten percent of the donations go to Fethullah Gülen" Arslan further claimed. Fethullah Gülen, who resides in the U.S. in self-imposed exile, leads the Gülen Movement, which has charter schools and organizations in hundreds of countries around the world. Arslan, who moved to Uzbekistan after cutting ties with the Gülen movement, decided to return to Turkey to tell everything he knew about them. But this decision had, he said, led him to become a victim of a plot which led to his arrest. Arslan was detained in Uzbekistan for hooliganism and was later jailed on those grounds. He was then charged with not paying taxes. But he claimed that these charges were never documented. The latest charge he faces is being a member of al- Qaeda. Mehmet Arslan's brother, Yakup Arslan, interpreted the whole process as a plot against his brother. "My brother would have returned to Turkey to tell everything he knows about the movement. But he became a victim of a plot. He is now being held under arrest in Uzbekistan," he said. Speaking to Sabah Daily, Arslan also stated that the Gülen Movement attended a gathering chaired by Fethullah Gülen every week. He said he had witnessed many occasions of graft and theft. "After finding out about the corruption they are involved in, I decided to cut ties with the movement and quit my post. Two days after I gave up my duty, a journalist and a renowned politician, along with the leader of the masons, showed up to coax me to stay. It was impossible for me to stay [after I saw the Masons leader with them]." Noting that these are only parts of what he knows, Arslan said he was ready to reveal more about the movement 'for the sake of his country'. The movement, which waged an anti-government campaign in 2013 and is known for conducting operations to discredit and eventually topple the government, was behind a series of scandals involving illegal surveillance by Gülenist police officers and prosecutors. Arslan is not the first who has expressed dissent over Gülen movement's alleged illegal activities. A renowned columnist and former member of the Gülen Movement, Hüseyin Gülerce, also spoke out against the movement after he parted ways from an affiliated daily where he had been working as a journalist. Gülerce described the December 17 and December 25 operations conducted by the movement as an attempt to topple the government. Latif Erdoğan, once a close companion of the Gülen Movement's leader, Fethullah Gülen, also claimed that the group's real purpose behind the operations it conducted against the government was to topple it and replace it with an Islamic state. http://www.dailysabah.com/politics/2014/12/21/former-gulenist-claims-donations-used-for-bribing-bureaucrats Another example of a Gulen minion who donated over $20,000 for "favors"

HOW DOES A SO CALLED SCHOOL EMPLOYEE AFFORD OVER $20,000 IN CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS? Ismayil Ahmadov One reader has supplied this site with the Azerbaijan Connection SOCOR to Montenegro Casinos, Resorts (Bosnia) resorts that the Chicago based Niagara Foundation is working with Corrupt Chicago politicians to lure in wealthy Russians to this new resort and bankrupt Monte Carlo.

Is oil rich Azerbaijan ready to give up on their US lobbying via the Gulen Movement?

Turkish theologian Fethullah Gülen has during the past three decades built a network of schools, businesses, media-outlets, and civil-society organizations. The closing of schools in Azerbaijan based on his principles could affect Turkey’s relations with the US.

Azerbaijan’s recent crackdown on institutions and individuals allegedly linked to the influential Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen may not have halted promotional work by Gülen-associated organizations in the United States for the Azerbaijani government.

Baku’s wariness toward the elderly Turkish cleric, now living in Pennsylvania, first surfaced last December, whenTurkey, Azerbaijan’s closest ally, claimed that Gülen planned to overthrow the government of then Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a formerly close Gülen ally.

Following an April meeting between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Erdoğan, a few influential Azerbaijani officials, tagged by media as sympathetic to Gülen, lost their positions, and the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijani Republic (SOCAR) took over private high-schools, university-exam-preparation courses and a university run by a company linked to the so-called Gülen-movement. Some of the facilities were later closed.

Azerbaijani media had claimed that the movement, which advocates moderate Islam coupled with globalization, interfaith dialogues and “betterment of the individual,” had “infiltrated” Azerbaijan’s secular government.

But this supposed concern may not have extended to the movement’s lobbying efforts for Azerbaijan in the US.
In reality, noted Fuad Aliyev, a researcher into Islam in Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani government has “a close relationship” with the Gülen network, which “helps the government to lobby itself in Washington.”
Lobbying both local and national American politicians is a top priority for Azerbaijan, which, at just under $2.3 million, ranked among the top ten foreign countries for such expenditures in the US in 2013, according to an analysis by the Sunlight Foundations, a Washington, DC-based advocate for government-accountability.
As the South-Caucasus country sees its international profile rising – whether as a strategic energy hub or partner in the West’s anti-terrorism campaigns – that priority will remain intact.
But Azerbaijan also uses less overt lobbying methods.
One of the chief among them appears to be the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians (TCAE), a Houston,Texas-based non-profit umbrella group that describes its aim as “pursuing the interests of Turkic Americans and friends of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan in Houston, Washington and beyond.”
TCAE’s president and chief executive officer, Kemal Oksuz, formerly served as executive director of the Niagara Foundation, a Chicago-based network of non-profits that promote the teachings of Fetullah Gülen, the Foundation’s honorary president. Oksuz himself also has worked as head of the Gülen Institute, a Houston research organization that shares a similar goal.
Aside from cultural outreach programs within the US, the TCAE organizes trips for US congresspersons to Azerbaijan, US-Azerbaijan conventions and dinners with US officials. It also has promoted statewide recognition of the 1992 massacre of ethnic Azeris in Khojaly, during Azerbaijan’s war with Armenia over breakaway Nagorno Karabakh, as well as Azerbaijan’s oil and gas-pipeline projects.
The reason for that interest is clear: Oksuz serves as the president of the Assembly of Friends of Azerbaijan (AFAZ), another Houston-based non-profit organization. Rauf Mammadov, head of SOCAR USA, serves as the group’s treasurer.
Whether SOCAR’s takeover of the Gülen-linked educational facilities in Azerbaijan affected that relationship is not known. Neither AFAZ nor the Turquoise Council was available for comment.
In late April, though, after the warnings about a supposed Gülen-directed “infiltration” of the Azerbaijani government had begun, the Turquoise Council went ahead with promotions for the AFAZ-hosted, annual US-Azerbaijan Convention.
No Turquoise Council public events involving promotion of Azerbaijan are known to have occurred since then, however.
But those who have followed the Gülen movement’s activities in both Azerbaijan and Turkey doubt that Baku will want to call it quits – barring, that is, fresh pressure from now Turkish President Erdoğan, who recently received Azerbaijan’s highest honor, the Order of Heydar Aliyev.
“I don’t think that this is something [that] Azerbaijani diplomacy can easily refuse because [the] Azerbaijani community and lobby capacities in the US are weak, whereas [the]Turkish-Gülenist associations are very well implemented,” commented Bayram Balci, a scholar in the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Russia and Eurasia Program who formerly worked in Baku for the French Institute of Anatolian Studies.
A dozen US state legislatures have passed resolutions or adopted citations related to the Khojaly massacre since 2011. The measures have been publicized heavily by Gülen-sympathetic Turkic or Turkey-related organizations.
The promotion, however, works both ways, commented Aliyev.
“That lobby help was a guarantee of safety for Gülen schools and Gulen-linked entrepreneurs in Azerbaijan.”
But why the Gülen movement would continue to promote Azerbaijani causes in the US despite the takeover of Gülen-associated educational operations in Azerbaijan remains unclear.
As yet, small and mid-size Turkish businesses in Azerbaijan identified by researchers as run by Gülen sympathizers do not appear to have been similarly targeted.
Aliyev attributes that immunity to the movement’s importance for the Azerbaijani government. The Turquoise Council, in particular, is believed to have warm ties with the Azerbaijan American Alliance led by Anar Mammadov, son of Azerbaijani Transportation Minister Ziya Mammadov, and a member of one of the country’s most politically influential families.
But, ultimately, what long-term return Azerbaijan can find from such lobbying groups, whether paid or unpaid, is uncertain, noted Richard D. Kauzlarich, a former US ambassador to Azerbaijan who now teaches at George Mason University’s School of Public Policy.
“The fact that they can assemble a group of former officials and members of Congress is not unusual. If you spend enough money. . .,” Ambassador Kauzlarich wrote in an email interview with EurasiaNet.org. “From Baku, the participants may appear to be ‘important,’ but, in the context of Washington politics . . . it’s not who shows up at receptions and dinners, but who can get things done . . . that determines one’s ‘importance.’”
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/70271

Meanwhile at the Kennedy center in Washington DC, Azerbaijan Lobbying celebrates the "Contract of the Century"

 



Azerbaijani News in U.S., Oil & Gas

20th Anniversary of “Contract of the Century” Celebrated in Washington, DC

September 18, 2014 •    from Texas Azerbaijani Organization

http://texasazerbaijanis.com/20th-anniversary-contract-century-celebrated-washington-dc/

WASHINGTON, D.C.
“Contract of the Century”, signed on September 20, 1994, marks the beginning of independent Azerbaijan’s policy of energy diversification, initiated by late President Heydar Aliyev and symbolizes the success, gained by Azerbaijan in regional and international partnerships. The contract signed in Baku with the participation of major energy companies and partner countries is still important and relevant after 20 years.
To honor the success of the contract and the international partnership that guaranteed this success, Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan to United States, BP, SOCAR and USACC organized a reception at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, one of the most prestigious cultural centers of the capital. The event was attended by the representatives of Obama Administration, top officials of U.S. State Department and Department of Energy, congressmen, representatives of diplomatic corps, academic circles as well as members of the business community.
Opening the ceremony, the speakers highlighted the historical significance of the deal, its successful implementation and achievements to date. Ambassador Elin Suleymanov underlined the signing of the “Contract of the Century” under Heydar Aliyev’s strong leadership as an important step to export the hydrocarbon resources of the Caspian to international markets. Ambassador Suleymanov noted that the event honoring the 20th Anniversary of the “Contract of the century” that will be held in Baku on September 20 will mark yet another date in the history of the contract. He informed the audience about the groundbreaking ceremony of Southern Gas Corridor to be held in Baku on September 20 and said he believes this event will be the beginning of a new era for all the region and participant countries. Bill Delahunt, former Congressman and new USACC Co-Chairman and Susan Sadigova, USACC Executive Director spoke about the contribution the contract had made to the development of Azerbaijan and the whole region.
Members of U.S. Congress – Jim Moran, Ruben Hinojosa, Andre Carson, Henry Cuellar and Donald Payne – expressed their support for the development of U.S.-Azerbaijan relations, stressed the leading role of Azerbaijan in the region and congratulated it with the success of “Contract of the Century”.
Reflecting on his firs trip to Azerbaijan before the “Contract of the Century” was signed 20 years ago, Jim Moran commended on the enormous development Azerbaijan made during this period and recommended everyone to visit Azerbaijan.
Ruben Hinojosa highlighted the work implemented under the President of the Azerbaijan Republic with the focus on turning “black gold into human capital”.
Andre Carson praised the contribution Azerbaijan was making in the energy security of Europe.
Congressmen Pete Gallego, Mike Fitzpatrick and Steve Stockman also attended the event and expressed their support to Azerbaijan.
Joe Murphy, Vice President of Southern Corridor for Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey and Michael Hoffman, External Affairs Director for Trans-Adriatic Pipeline reminded the pessimistic views expressed about the “Contract of the Century” in the past and added that the success of the contract proves that Southern Gas Corridor groundbreaking ceremony to be held in a few days will be as successful.
Amos Hochstein, Acting Special Envoy of U.S. Department of State, Jonathan Elkind, Assistant Secretary for International Affairs of Department of Energy and Eric Rubin, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Department of State reminded the crucial and consistent support the U.S. government extended to the “Contract of the Century” and its role in the strong cooperation between U.S. and Azerbaijan. Amos Hochstein, who will be attending the event honoring 20th Anniversary of the Contract of Century in Baku and Jonathan Elkind, who was the participant of the signing ceremony of the contract in Baku 20 years ago, spoke about the future perspectives of Southern Gas Corridor. Deputy Assistant Secretary Rubin stressed the importance given to Azerbaijan by the U.S. and said he believed these relations are based on constructive partnership, mutual respect, understanding and support.
The event continued with the performance of Azerbaijan’s talented jazz pianist Emil Afrasiyab and the national dances performed by Silk Road Dance Group.
 

Gulen Politicians Trips to Baku Conference raises ethics question

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Lawmakers-trips-to-Baku-conference-raise-eithics-5649142.php?cmpid=twitter-premium&t=3a9014c8757fcfd54e

HERE IS THE US LAWMAKERS WITH THE PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN, ALIYEV

more information on Azerbaijan http://turkishinvitations.weebly.com/is-the-turquoise-council-the-paid-lobbying-firm-of-azerbaijans-government.html

Lawmakers' trips to Baku conference raise ethics questions Question lingers: Who paid tab for luxury jaunt prior to sanction vote? By Will Tucker and Lise Olsen July 26, 2014 | Updated: July 27, 2014 12:16am

In May 2013, Richard Lugar, former U.S. senator and onetime chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, took the podium at a sleek, modern convention center in the capital of Azerbaijan and urged the U.S. Congress to exempt a natural gas field in the Caspian Sea from economic sanctions against Iran. The Baku conference was sponsored in part by SOCAR, the Azeri national oil company, and the vast Shah Deniz gas field was a potential game-changer in the country's quest to become a major player in global energy circles. But one of SOCAR's partners in the Shah Deniz project was the Iranian national oil company, NIOC, and Congress was considering a new round of sanctions against Iran, Azerbaijan's neighbor, that could potentially derail a $28 billion project. The Azeris, SOCAR and other major energy partners in the Shah Deniz project desperately wanted an exemption. Ten congressmen and 35 staffers accepted all- expense-paid trips to the Baku conference. In Lugar's audience that day were three members of the U.S. House of Representatives who sit on the House Foreign Affairs committee considering Iranian sanctions - Texas Reps. Steve Stockman and Ted Poe, both Republicans; and Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y. Less than two months later, the day before the House vote, the Shah Deniz exemption mysteriously appeared in the final draft of the sanctions bill, which passed. It's unclear who engineered that last-minute change. Ethics rules at issue A Houston Chronicle analysis of reports that Stockman, Poe, Meeks and the seven other U.S. lawmakers later filed with the House Ethics Committee show that none disclosed any sponsorship of their Baku conference trips by corporations, foreign governments or lobbyists.

 Taking a foreign trip to a conference sponsored by corporations that employ lobbyists appears to be a violation of congressional ethics rules, according to the House ethics manual. The conference in Azerbaijan's capital included a discussion by Kemal Oksuz, right, with President Barack Obama's 2008 campaign manager, David Plouffe. Larry Luxner The conference in Azerbaijan's capital included a discussion by Kemal Oksuz, right, with President Barack Obama's 2008 campaign manager, David Plouffe. Only five of the 10 American lawmakers who made the Baku trip agreed to respond to the Chronicle's questions and said they complied with disclosure requirements. The 2013 conference, called "U.S.-Azerbaijan: Vision for Future," was held at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, a gleaming white architectural masterpiece by the Caspian Sea that, though named for a despot, serves as a symbol of Azerbaijan's transformation from former Soviet-bloc state to an energy-rich political player. SOCAR, along with other Azeri government interests, has become one of Washington, D.C.'s big spenders in efforts to win American allies to get its petroleum products to markets worldwide. Public records, programs, photos, emails and interviews collected by the Chronicle confirm that lobbyists, the Azeri government and energy companies all participated in the elaborate Baku gathering. In addition to the 10 U.S. House members and staffers, state legislators and local politicians accepted all-expense-paid trips to the conference, which was festooned with the logos of SOCAR's powerful energy allies, including BP and ConocoPhillips.

Along with Stockman and Poe, Texas lawmakers Sheila Jackson Lee and Ruben Hinojosa, both Democrats, made the trip. At least four congressmen took along a spouse or fiancé. Some flew first-class and extended their trips with stays in luxury hotels in Turkey. The congressional travel tabs alone totaled $270,000, trip reports compiled by the Chronicle show. That doesn't include fees or expenses paid to former government officials, like Lugar, who attended as speakers. He declined an interview request. And according to documents, those bills were covered by five related, U.S.-based Turkic nonprofit organizations, one of which, the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians, is based in Houston and described itself as the event's "organizer." Under federal law, the Turquoise Council was required to disclose any corporate support or foreign government assistance for the Baku congressional trips. The Chronicle's analysis indicates it did not. Scandals led to reforms Scandals involving jaunts enjoyed by lawmakers to Caribbean islands and lavish European golf outings prompted the House of Representatives in 2008 to approve reforms that banned lobbyists and corporations that employ U.S. lobbyists from planning or funding foreign trips. But foreign governments or corporations can still donate to nonprofits that give foreign trips to congressmen - a loophole that has created a boom in nonprofit-funded trips - provided both the nonprofits and the lawmakers disclose such support. "Knowing the sponsors of these fact-finding trips gives voters the opportunity to hold their representatives accountable for any improper relationships. Without transparency there is no accountability," said Benjamin Freeman, a senior policy adviser at the nonpartisan Third Way in Washington, D.C. "How often does this happen? The honest answer is that we have no idea, because we don't know who many of these sponsors are. That must change." The Baku conference, the marquee event of the congressional trips, featured a speech from Azerbaijan's president, Ilham Aliyev, whose family controls much of his country's wealth, and focused on Azerbaijan's political and energy agenda. It enjoyed substantial corporate support, including sponsorships from BP, ConocoPhillips and Caspian Drilling, as well as from SOCAR itself.

Energy giant BP confirmed with the Chronicle that it contributed $10,000 for the convention and gave more again this year for a follow-up event in Washington. In an email, Houston-based organizer Kemal Oksuz said the Turquoise Council received $10,000 from various sponsors for the Baku conference, whose names appeared on the conference website. But Oksuz did not disclose that in travel forms he filed for congressmen who accepted funding from his group. Oksuz said he did not have to disclose corporate sponsorships, in part, because "those contributions always came after the conventions." Nondisclosures illegal Lawmakers who went to Baku and nonprofits alike should have disclosed any corporate conference sponsorships, said Ken Boehm, an expert in congressional ethics who reviewed the records at the Chronicle's request. By failing to do so, even after seeing event banners and websites listing sponsors, congressmen may have violated ethics rules, he said.

Leaders of nonprofits that organized trips to Baku may have violated federal law by failing to disclose corporate sponsors, said Boehm, chairman of the National Legal and Policy Center, a nonprofit that promotes ethics in government. "Once the corporate sponsors admit their paid involvement, it's game over for whoever signed the House pre-trip forms stating falsely that there was no such sponsorship," he said. To pass muster, congressional "fact-finding" trips abroad must be organized principally for education purposes. Congressional officials must first ask the House Ethics Committee for permission to go, and sponsors must affirm that lobbyists will neither be involved in planning nor accompany House members on the trip. Nonprofits sponsoring trips must disclose support from corporations or foreign agents. And, once they return to the United States, lawmakers must report true sponsors of trips to the best of their knowledge. Records show that Meeks did not disclose his Baku trip expenses until a year after the deadline. Meeks did not respond to a request for comment. Congressman Poe and two other Houston-area House members - Stockman and Jackson Lee - spoke at the conference in Baku at the invitation of the Turquoise Council. All three took flights that cost from $10,500 to $12,000, more than the current advertised first-class fares. Stockman got another $5,000 in campaign contributions in three installments that same month from Oksuz personally. Neither Stockman nor Jackson Lee responded to any questions. Poe said all trip expenses were properly disclosed. "The congressman does not believe he was lobbied in Baku," said spokesperson Shaylyn Hynes. "He viewed the events as informational." Hinojosa emphasized that "all expenses were also reported and approved. The purpose for the trip was to learn more about U.S. interests, and in my case, educational programs that the Azerbaijani government is developing." Dominic Gabello, chief of staff for Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-N.M., said her boss used the trip as an "opportunity to learn more about the challenges Azerbaijan faces" and specifically questioned Azeri leaders about how they deal with poverty. "She has not been lobbied about specific issues," Gabello said. Vague tax records Oksuz, a Houston public relations director, serves as president of the Turquoise Council. He told the lone U.S. journalist present in Baku that the event cost around $1.5 million and that he'd offered speakers fees of $2,500. Some accepted gifts of hand-woven rugs, too, he told the Washington Diplomat.

Kemal Oksuz leads two nonprofits that share the same suite in a Galleria office tower, tax records show. Both groups were identified as sponsors or organizers of the Baku conference, and both have accepted money from SOCAR. One group, the Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan, operates as a U.S.-based public relations arm of SOCAR, according to foreign government lobbying disclosures filed in 2014. Via email, Oksuz answered a few basic questions, but then repeatedly delayed and canceled interviews requested by the Chronicle. He did not respond to requests to provide updated financial records that his nonprofit must disclose under state and federal laws. The Turquoise Council's 2012 nonprofit tax return, available on the Internet, is "bare bones," discloses no expenses related to trips for elected officials and provides unusually vague descriptions of major funding sources, said David Nelson, a Houston attorney who specializes in nonprofit law. '

Educational' trips Records show the Turquoise Council shared Baku congressional trip expenses with four other interconnected and obscure nonprofit organizations run by Turkic Americans, all of which claim to use "educational" trips to promote cross-cultural understanding, according to a Houston Chronicle review of dozens of federal disclosure records and nonprofit tax returns. The groups included the Turkic American Federation of Midwest, based in Chicago; an umbrella group called the Council of Turkic American Associations, based in New York City and the Turkic American Alliance, based in Washington, D.C.. Each group leader identified his own nonprofit as lone trip sponsor. Faruk Taban, leader of the Turkic American Alliance, said his group works to coordinate efforts among 240 different community associations. Generally, those groups work to "foster dialogue and understanding between Turkic states - in this specific case, Azerbaijan - and the U.S. Our work focuses as much on promoting understanding between the countries as between the communities," he said via email. Many of those nonprofits are led by followers of Fetullah Gulen, a moderate Turkish ex-imam who lives in exile in an enclave in Pennsylvania but wields a philosophical and political influence throughout the Islamic world.

Many Gulenists are involved in prep schools in Turkey and in Azerbaijan, as well as in charter schools in the United States, including the Harmony Schools in Texas. Denies hiring lobbyists Collectively, Turkic groups have funded 272 foreign trips for members of Congress and their staffs from 2009-2013, according to information analyzed by the Chronicle from a database of travel data compiled by LegiStorm. Together they have helped make Turkey the top foreign travel destination for members of Congress, after Israel. Trips to Azerbaijan are far less common. Oksuz said the Turquoise Council has no formal ties to Gulen. He denied retaining any lobbyists or foreign agents in disclosures he made as a Baku 2013 trip sponsor. Other records show that a SOCAR official in Azerbaijan, who normally would have nothing to do with visa approvals, helped Oksuz obtain visas for 21 people, including members of Congress and a lobbyist, Ari Mittleman of the Washington firm Roberti&White, a registered foreign agent. Records show lobbyists attended the conference - and two reported meeting with congressmen the day of their 12-hour return flight to the US.

There is no rule against lobbyists and congressmen meeting on foreign soil, though there is one forbidding them from accompanying each other on trips. "Once they get members overseas, it's kind of back to the wild, wild West of lobbying," said Freeman. "So long as the foreign agent and policymaker are overseas; the requirements for reporting meetings are void." Historical connection Azeri interests have continued conversations with D.C. lawmakers with help from one of the nonprofits run by Oksuz. In April, the Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan held another "U.S.-Azerbaijan: Vision for Future" convention, this time at the Willard Hotel in Washington. It is the lobby of the Willard, where influential men once stood around hoping to buttonhole President Ulysses S. Grant, that inspired the term "lobbyists." Many of the same sponsors from last year returned, including SOCAR, BP and ConocoPhillips. But several U.S. lawmakers advertised as speakers did not show up. Then came a late announcement: Rep. Steve Stockman would speak. Stockman walked to the podium and, in a booming voice, called for the U.S. to "stand by" Azerbaijan. "We have a lot of friends in the media who want to criticize this country, but I've been there," he said. "The future is there … One day I hope for a direct flight from Houston to Baku."

Gulen Azerbaijan lobbying in Tennessee backfires

Rep. Joe Towns "Just a coincidence I received $10,000 from Azerbaijan lobbying and
then shortly after tries to pass a resolution in Tennessee about Azerbaijan.

 http://www.newschannel5.com/story/25530882/lawmaker-says-10k-contribution-resolution-just-coincidence

by Phil Williams
Chief Investigative Reporter

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A lawmaker's $10,000 campaign contribution and a resolution he introduced this year in the legislature are reviving questions about foreign influences on Tennessee's Capitol Hill.

Last year, NewsChannel 5 Investigates first revealed how advocates for foreign countries were taking your lawmakers on expensive junkets.

Now, we've discovered a case of mysterious donors handing out money for a legislative campaign.

During a hurried legislative session dominated by all sorts of contentious issues, state Rep. Joe Towns found time to introduce a House resolution -- HR 145 -- calling for national support for the country of Azerbaijan.

"Let me tell you where it came from -- it actually came from friends that I know that are from Azerbaijan," the Memphis Democrat told NewsChannel 5 Investigates.

An oil-rich, predominantly Muslim country -- where Eastern Europe meets western Asia -- Azerbaijan has been involved in a decades-old dispute with the predominantly Christian country of Armenia over territory that both countries claim.

Towns said he agreed to introduce the resolution because Azerbaijan is a U.S. ally.

"You did not just come up with this one your own?" we asked.

"No, no, no," Towns answered.

"And you knew nothing about the conflict between these two countries?"

"No, I did not."

But Armenian immigrant Barry Barsoumian said, "Those brutal people, they are trying to change history by going around different states in the United States passing resolutions."

Barsoumian discovered Towns' resolution and could not believe anyone would ask a Tennessee lawmaker to help a country known for its human rights abuses and whose leader is seen as one of the world's most corrupt.

"I asked him if it was Azerbaijani Embassy. He denied it," Barsoumian recalled. "But he wouldn't name or tell me what organization was behind it."

But NewsChannel 5 Investigates looked at Towns' campaign reports and discovered he introduced the resolution just two weeks after he got a total of $10,000 in campaign contributions from people out of Texas with ties to the Azerbaijani community.

"This one was probably in Texas, Houston," Towns said, looking at his campaign disclosure.

"You had a fundraiser in Houston?" we asked.

"Uh-huh. I've had fundraisers in other places before. That's true."

"Who hosted that fundraiser?"

"Well, my friends. Friends of mine."

NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked, "Who in particular?"

"Well, I don't want to get involved in their names because this is about me," Towns answered. "I don't want to talk about their names and who they were."

Still, our investigation discovered that a Turkish-Azerbaijani cultural center in Houston appears to be the common connection for all seven of the contributors, who reportedly gave either $1,000 or $1,500 each to Towns' campaign.

"Did the people who gave you the $10,000 ask you to introduce this resolution?" NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked Towns.

"No, they didn't. Did not," he responded.

"It's purely coincidental?"

"Oh, of course."

But Barsoumian called it "suspicious [that] somebody in Tennessee would introduce a bill for Azerbaijan and then those organizations funnel money to his campaign."

One of the contributors listed on Towns' campaign report as having given a thousand dollars first told us, "That's wrong information. I don't know anyone from Tennessee."

Later he changed his story, saying "I remember something like that. I never met him. I did it through my friends, my community."

Adding to the mystery: almost a third of the money supposedly came from two people who live in an apartment in one of Houston's roughest neighborhoods.

In fact, we identified $13,000 in contributions in the last two years to various candidates around the country from just one low-rent apartment.

So we went back to Representative Towns.

"Does that strike you as odd?" we asked.

"See, in order for me to know that," he responded, "I would have to know the lay of the land down there, the people. I don't know. I don't know."

But when Towns' resolution came up in committee, members of the Armenian community had already lobbied other lawmakers to kill the bill.

The resolution never even got a vote -- a strange end to what some consider a strange piece of legislation.

NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked Towns, "You attend a fundraiser and then suddenly you are introducing this resolution. Do you understand why someone might be suspicious?"

"I can't deal with people's suspicion," he said. "I don't address their suspicion. The fact is that it happens all the time."

Some of the contributors appear to have connections to groups who've taken Tennessee officials on free trips to Turkey and Azerbaijan.

Towns was supposed to go on one of those trips last year, but he wasn't able to go.

Still, he did sponsor another House resolution that essentially accused Armenia of war crimes.

That resolution actually passed the House on a 93-0 vote.

So why would Azerbaijan care about what the Tennessee House thinks about world affairs?

It appears to be part of an orchestrated PR campaign to show that world opinion is on their side.

Towns said that he hopes it leads to better understanding of all the countries in that region.

Email: pwilliams@newschannel5.com

Related story:

Turkish Groups Offer Free Foreign Trips For Lawmakers

Gulen Schools in Azerbaijan ordered closed - All that Azerbaijan lobbying a waste of money

Gulen started his schools in the oil rich country of Azerbaijan some 20 years ago.  More correctly we should say the CIA Gladio B operation used the Gulen schools to infiltrate the politics, oil, education of Azerbaijan.  This was to gain a strong foothold in the Central Asia and Caucaus countries to destabilize the interests of Russia and China.  President Aliyev isn't so much about being anti-Gulen as he is CIA and their terrorism sponsored thirst for oil.  3 days before ISIS invaded Iraq, the Gulen Turkish schools were vacated.  More on that later. 

 

Azerbaijan's government-run energy company has announced that private schools formerly run by a movement led by U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen have been closed down.

From February to April, the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) took over dozens of private high schools, university exam preparation centers and universities run by a Turkish education company called Çağ Ögretim which is allegedly linked with the Gülen movement.
   
SOCAR announced June 18 that it decided to close these schools, which had been operated by the company now known as Azerbaijan International Education Center, due to high maintenance costs and difficulties in project management.

Turkish government accuses Gülen-led 'Hizmet' (Service) movement of forming a shadow structure within the Turkish state and of plotting to topple the government.

In March, Azeri media reported that Azerbaijan sacked Elnur Aslanov, head of President İlham Aliyev's Political Analysis and Information Department, accusing him of having links with the movement.

Newspapers had said Gülen's network had also infiltrated state institutions in Azerbaijan and found cohorts among some politicians.

June/19/2014

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/azerbaijan-shuts-down-gulen-linked-schools.aspx?pageID=238&nID=67988&NewsCatID=356

 

From Turkish Press

http://www.turkishpress.com/news/411828/

 

From Haberler news

http://en.haberler.com/azerbaijan-shuts-down-gulen-linked-schools-472091/

 

From Daily Sabah (Erdogan AKP leaning news) http://www.dailysabah.com/education/2014/06/19/gulenaaffiliated-schools-in-azerbaijan-face-closure

 

BREAKING

GÜLEN-AFFILIATED SCHOOLS IN AZERBAIJAN FACE CLOSURE

·         Daily Sabah

·         Updated : 19.06.2014 14:55:07

 

Schools and educational institutions affiliated with the Gülen Movement in Azerbaijan have been closed due to numerous reasons including additional costs, financial problems and management issues.

The closure was announced by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) which has in the past year acquired schools owned by the Gülen Movement called Çağ Öğretim İşletme (Çağ Educational Enterprise). The Azerbaijani International Education Center (UEM) had a meeting and decided that the operation of schools would be a financial burden for them.

Thirteen branches of prep schools, 10 high schools, one gymnasium and Kafkas University used to be a part of the Çağ Educational Enterprise. SOCAR has said that the institutions will continue their operations until the exams for higher education institutions are finalized. Moreover, it was stated that the students and staff at these institutions would be transferred to other schools and institutions until the upcoming school year.

A letter leaked online earlier this month revealed Gülenists' financial power and influence in Azerbaijan. In the letter, a follower presented a "financial report" of the movement's activities in Azerbaijan for 2013 to the movement's U.S.-based leader Fethullah Gülen.

The report shows that the movement controls assets of over $2 million (TL 4.28 million) in the country and "presented gifts to influential people in Azerbaijan" worth $732,000, implying bribery, as well as expenses for "friends in state agencies." The letter states that the movement has trouble transferring finances to Turkey "for obvious reasons," possibly referring to the fallout between the government and the movement, and asks for Gülen's advice on the matter.

The Gülen Movement is an influential group that evolved from a religious congregation to a network of followers united by anti-government ambitions. It operates schools in numerous countries around the world, including Azerbaijan. Following the Dec. 17 operation, during which Gülenists launched a campaign against the government under the guise of a graft probe, the government moved to purge members of the organization in state and government agencies.

According to unconfirmed media reports, the administration in Azerbaijan, which maintains close ties with Turkey, allegedly sacked a senior presidential adviser to President Ilham Aliyev over his ties to Gülenists and launched a probe into the activities of Gülenists in Azerbaijan. Currently there is a case investigating the Gülen Movement's involvement in the infiltration of state institutions and media sources claim witnesses pour in to the courts to give testimony about their experience.

It is expressed that a number of witnesses, some of whom are senior police chiefs and military officers of the Turkish Armed Forces request to remain anonymous and they give crucial information about the movement's connections with public services and institutions. Three prosecutors in the Counter terrorism Department collect and record the information and files given by witnesses while some claim Fethullah Gülen who is the leader of the movement could be facing extradition charges in the case that he is convicted