In Blow to Erdogan, Turkish Court Halts Closing of Schools Tied to His Rival
ISTANBUL — In a blow to the government, Turkey’s highest court has overturned a law that would have closed thousands of preparatory schools linked to an influential Muslim cleric and rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The Constitutional Court ruled on Monday that the legislation to shut the schools, passed in 2014 while Mr. Erdogan was prime minister and his governing Justice and Development Party had a majority in Parliament, violated the freedom of education enshrined in the Turkish Constitution, according to local news reports. Although the court’s decision was handed down on Monday, it was not expected to be published until Wednesday.
The schools, attended by students seeking to pass national high school and university entrance exams, are run by Fethullah Gulen, a cleric who lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania. He presides over a network of millions of followers worldwide, some of whom hold high-ranking positions in law enforcement, the judiciary and business in Turkey.
Mr. Gulen is a former ally of Mr. Erdogan, and together they removed the military from Turkish politics in recent years. But since accomplishing that goal, they have been enmeshed in a power struggle that turned into a public feud last year when Mr. Erdogan accused the cleric of being behind acorruption investigation meant to topple his government.
Mr. Erdogan labeled the investigation a “coup attempt” orchestrated by a “parallel state” led by Mr. Gulen, and in response purged thousands of police officers and prosecutors suspected of having ties with the movement. Charges against all parties implicated in the corruption investigation were dropped this year.
The preparatory schools are a main source of income for Mr. Gulen’s movement, and their closing would have crippled the group’s financing. Mr. Erdogan said the decision to close the schools was “part of a reform of an unhealthy educational system that ranks Turkey below most other developed countries.” He said the system benefited only the children of rich families who could afford to go to the schools.
An appeal to overturn the law was sent to the Constitutional Court, in Ankara, by the main opposition, the Republican People’s Party, which In Blow to Erdogan, Turkish Court Halts Closing of Schools Tied to His Rival - The New York Times:
