Justice will be sought for blackmail

On July 28, 2016, only two weeks after the July 15 coup attempt, I wrote an article titled, “Ensenizdeyiz” (We are on your back), and expressed some of my concerns on the fight against the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ).

I had highlighted that as Turkey was fighting FETÖ as one, some were trying to solve their personal matters and others were trying to turn the struggle into a profit for themselves.

It has now been about one-and-a-half years since the incident. Our determination in the fight against FETÖ remains the same. FETÖ, which, before July 15, was the concern of almost only President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and a small group close to him, today, is the whole of Turkey’s matter. The whole country has seen the true face of this dangerous organization. The fight against FETÖ will not be cut. The people will not allow FETÖ to rise again on these lands.

How is our fight going against those exploiting the fight against FETÖ, those discriminating, favoring their family and friends, conducting their own personal business in between, trying to turn the fight against FETÖ into a profit and those who use FETÖ for profit by using it as a tool of blackmail?

Both after the Dec. 17 and Dec. 25, 2013 and July 15, 2016 attempts, an immoral mob that sees the fight against FETÖ as an area of income emerged.

This immoral mob, at times works in an organization and at times, individually.

This mob either carries out an assassination of reputation or procures financial gains under the name of “the fight against FETÖ” through extortion, through threats.

They all have one thing in common: They are not sincere. Their insincerity is obvious at the first glance. They all have a dark history. It is proven by documents that they have been around; they have always stood by the winning side, and they have the ability to swiftly take steps.

It was only yesterday that they were singing praise to FETÖ leader Fetullah Gülen, yet today, they are singing praise to the fight against FETÖ. This is possible. However, when they were praising Gülen in the past, they were over exaggerating, and today, they are approaching the fight against FETÖ with the same exaggeration.

Yesterday, they were so pro-Gülen that they were almost going to worship him, yet today, they are using social media, local and national media, newspaper columns, TV shows, as if they are the only ones fighting FETÖ, to profit through threats and extortion.

They are threatening provincial and district heads, blackmailing mayors, purging state officials, unjustly and immorally attacking bureaucrats as well as deputies and ministers; they are scaring businessmen and stealing large sums of money from businessmen saying, “You have been found to have the ByLock application, but we will save you.”

Such immoral tools of operation have started to mushroom in almost every district, every province. Hitmen. Hired people. They are all conducting operations, irresponsibly, carelessly, immorally, by gaining the support of the rivals of the person they are going to attack.

They are targeting the honest people among us and downing them one by one. They target the honorable, moral, pure and self-sacrificing parties of this cause, slander them, and clipping their wings by calling them “FETÖ terrorists” or saying, “They are not fighting against FETÖ.”

A lot of these people cannot risk fighting this shameless, disgusting mob that has no principles or morals. Those who are afraid, those who are unable to see the level of danger surrender to these vile operations.

It really is difficult to fight them. Because they use FETÖ methods under the pretext of fighting FETÖ. They are attacking good people with methods they will never be able to use or defend themselves through.

Fortunately, the fight against these assassinators of reputation, these extortionists, has also started.

Some figures who are trying to make adjustments here and there through social media and the media, under the pretext of fighting FETÖ, have been detained for blackmailing businessmen.

This is only the beginning. Whoever is trying to make an income from the fight against FETÖ will be dismissed and be held accountable.

Approach those around you who may display an exaggerated reaction to FETÖ, who tries to weaken the fight with suspicion. Never surrender to blackmail. Surrendering to blackmail, giving way to despair, giving up on the fight is to surrender to this immoral mob. All of their masks will fall. Do not give them the opportunity.