OLIVE OIL versus WATER : CONFIDENTIAL HIZMET versus PUBLIC HIZMET

Peace!

The below article was written by Ahmet Dönmez, an honest and professional journalist who worked for 15 years at ZAMAN, the largest media organ of the Hizmet Movement in Turkiye. 

And it is the second part of a long (48-part) series penned by him titled "How the Jamaat was dragged step-by-step toward July 15th 2016 coup attempt from the inside". 

I am willing to post it on my blog hoping that it will be awakening and enlightening for those who read it. 

Cordially,

Abdullah Erdemli

Luzern - Switzerland

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OLIVE OIL versus WATER : CONFIDENTIAL HIZMET versus PUBLIC HIZMET

By Ahmet Dönmez – 17/02/2021

I deemed such an article essential so that the upcoming parts of this series can be better understood.

This is because most readers are about to step into a completely different world they have never known before.

This includes the "Jamaat’s" (the Movement’s) own grassroots base.

In fact, I estimate that the astonishment of the Movement’s own followers will be even greater than that of other readers.

Because they are about to encounter a "Hizmet" (Service) that is very different—utterly different—from the one they have known until today, the one they dedicated their lives to, and the one for which they have paid great prices.

Yes, perhaps everyone within the Jamaat has heard of or knows that there is a "grey area" called Mahrem Hizmetler (Confidential Services) or Hususî Hizmetler (Special Services).

However, except for the specialists and those directly involved, no one knows what actually goes on behind those "confidential" walls.

Yet, without knowing this area, neither what I will describe in this article series nor what has been happening for years can be fully understood.

I believe this is the greatest cause of the confusion currently experienced within the Jamaat. 

Because, in reality, all the matters that are subjects of criticism, discussion, and even accusations for years stem from what has happened in this dim, "grey" region.

Those who have always remained in "broad daylight"—whose only job is to strive for the sake of humanity to earn God's pleasure—never believe what is said, viewing it all as a "perception operation" 

(propaganda), because they assume the entirety of the Jamaat is just like themselves.

Let me try to explain the situation from the very beginning…

As far as I can see, the Movement consists roughly of two pillars.

One is the normal "Hizmet" (Service) Movement: known by everyone, visible, and admired and loved by public opinion.

The other is the "confidential structure": known or recognized by no one except a small minority, whose legitimacy is self-declared, and whose wisdom/motives are never questioned.

If we compare this to a triangle, the "Hizmet Movement" sits at one corner of the base, and the "confidential structure" sits at the other corner.

What turns these two sides—which normally could never or should never be side-by-side—into a meaningful whole, a triangle, is the existence of a third point at the top that joins them. 

At that point of union, at the apex of the triangle, sits the leader of the Movement, Fethullah Gülen.

Gülen is the leader of both: the Hizmet Movement and the Confidential Structure.

The interesting part is that the greatest opponent of the "confidential structure" would normally be the very principles, values, and teachings of Hizmet itself.

But in an extremely strange way—and as a very interesting phenomenon for the social sciences—we see that both can exist under a single roof.

That is why, when Gülen is asked a question about stealing exam questions (for state positions), he says "this is strictly forbidden (haram)." 

Indeed, Gülen could not think or say otherwise!

It is the very principles of the Hizmet Movement that create this perception that "Gülen couldn't possibly think or say otherwise."

But despite this, what makes it possible to take and distribute exam questions (stealing them) in order to plant the maximum number of personnel into the public sector (the state apparatus) is the existence of this "confidential structure."

Because this "special/confidential" side has its own different rules, different methods, a different fiqh (religious jurisprudence/logic), different priorities, and a different rhetoric.

Let’s call the corner where the Hizmet Movement—known by everyone and the whole world—is located "Corner A," and the corner where the "Confidential Services" are located "Corner B."

The principles that Gülen preaches for "Corner A" do not apply to "Corner B."

For "Corner A," Gülen appears as a reclusive religious scholar and speaks based on the beautiful virtues inherent in the essence of religion.

To "Corner B," however, he speaks more as the leader of a political movement.

But he cannot mention this to those in "Corner A." 

That is, he cannot speak to those in "Corner A" about what he discusses with those in "Corner B." 

Because he cannot explain his conversations with "Corner B" to those in "Corner A." 

Even if he did, those in "Corner A" would not consent; they would not approve of most of what "Corner B" does.

Gülen himself knows this very well. 

But still, he cannot give up on "Corner B." 

Because, in his eyes, this corner is the essential element.

Because Gülen has a "grand ideal" (gaye-i hayal), and he believes it cannot be reached without "B."

At the very beginning, he made a legal/religious ruling (ijtihad) as follows:

"To achieve a great good, a small evil is accepted."

"A private harm is tolerated to prevent a general harm."

Therefore, those serving in "Corner B"—the confidential structure—believe this: They have actually taken on the hardest task. While others are running "like purebred stallions" outside for various services, they are fighting at the front lines, in the risky zone, with their lives on the line!

Allow me to use a passage here from an article I penned last year titled, "On Criticisms of the Jamaat and the Resulting Reactions..." :

“According to them [to those in the movement's secret side], such errors are merely 'objectionable acts' that became mandatory due to necessity; they are a set of inevitable measures born from Turkey’s unique conditions. Nothing else was possible, nothing else will be, and even today, these are seen as exceptional decisions whose justification should not be doubted. They are a tangle of the 'lesser of two evils' (ehven-i şer) that cannot be understood from the perspective of the common people (âvâm), but can only be explained through the window of 'relative justice' (adalet-i izafiye). Whatever was done, was done correctly. In an environment where the enemy resorts to every kind of intrigue and is armed with every kind of devilish weapon, it is impossible to solve problems through 'absolute justice.' The jurisprudence (fiqh) of this type of work is also different. To question such objectionable methods without looking at what the 'Deep State' or other power groups in Turkey are doing—and without debating the source of the conditions that forced the Jamaat’s hand—is stupidity, naivety, and serves no purpose other than carrying ammunition to the 'enemy’s' front.”

To better grasp this dual structure, let us use another metaphor:

Imagine a water glass. Suppose this glass is filled halfway with olive oil and halfway with water.

Inside the glass, the olive oil does not mix with the water, nor the water with the olive oil. 

In fact, the water filling its half of the glass assumes the entire glass is filled with water just like itself.

So, why did Gülen feel the need for such a secret structure?

For the very same reason Doğan Avcıoğlu [a prominent Turkish leftist intellectual]once said, “I would rather convince one colonel than deceive ten workers”...!

The reason for the existence of the "Confidential Hizmet" must be sought within the security architecture and genetic codes of our state itself.

First and foremost, the state itself has a massive and deep "confidential structure." 

This is a state that, despite its constitution, laws, courts, parliament, government, and every source of legitimacy, does not settle for these and instead seeks its survival (bekâ) in another dark and bloody field called the "Deep State"...!

It is a mindset that pulls itself into a zone where law does not exist—a mind that maintains its existence in an area stripped of statutes, and which is entirely arbitrary and irregular...!

There, one has the license for every kind of lawlessness, every kind of dirty setup, unsolved murders, conspiracies, and provocations.

Whether you are a mobster, a drug trafficker, or a merchant of religion (religionist fanatic), you are given "sacred" duties there "for the sake of the motherland" and this is called "the survival of the state"...!

Let’s go further back. Since the time of the Unionists (the Young Turks of the last fifty years of Ottoman Empire), every entity striving to seize power in Turkey has been in a struggle to be effective within the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK).

Why did the "committee-ism" (komitacılık), secret societies, organizations within Masonic lodges, and Unionist parties exist since the late Ottoman era? 

I believe Gülen entered this field for that same reason.

When a despotic, domineering, coercive, arbitrary, and military-backed regime was established following the Republic—one that excluded all differences and perceived them as threats—almost every group outside this dominant ideology felt the need to hide itself.

Why does Mr. DOĞU PERİNÇEK [a controversial political figure]—who, despite being a political party leader, established an organizational model in the TSK, the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), and the judiciary that is anything but democratic and far from transparent—constantly talk about "our friends, our friends"? 

I believe Gülen established such a structure for the very same reason.

This is a country where even political parties, which should be among the most legitimate organs of democracy, have a set of covert structures.

In short, as long as our state does not become democratized and a state of law in the true sense, unfortunately, secret struggle groups like these will always exist.

Because for a long time, Gülen has acted according to the motto: 

“You are either everywhere, or you are nowhere"...

He was never just a clergyman or a religious scholar alone. He is simultaneously a political actor.

He is a man with political goals, ambitions, orders, dreams, and expectations. 

Even if he envisioned this as a tool for his religious aims, he is a leader who believed that "there can be no power without the state."

He used his religious charisma very effectively in this field. 

And he built such a model that those who spent their lives running from "school to school" all over the world never mixed with those racing to plant more men into the state bureaucracy.

Like water and olive oil being in the same container but never mixing...!

This "special-confidential structure" was purportedly created to bring the lawless structure in Turkey to an end and bring transparency to the country.

However, contrary to this claim, this "special structure" attempted to use that dark region for its own benefit. 

It chose to remain in that parasitic field it claimed to attack and dismantle. 

And during this thorny process, it diversified the pre-existing malfunctions and essentially produced a "version of its own."

Who knows, perhaps due to the nature of this dark region, the opposite was simply not possible...!

It is narrated that when speaking with those in "Corner B," Gülen sanctioned certain illegalities with the words: "When surgeons use a scalpel, they sometimes make a wide cut so that cancerous cells do not recur." 

It is also narrated that he cleared the path for the concept of "relative justice" (adalet-i izafiyye) instead of "absolute justice" (adalet-i mahza) by simply saying, "In this era, Turkey's problems cannot be solved with absolute justice."

Consequently, the angle of deviation, which was a mere millimeter at the starting point, grew to a magnitude of kilometers by the time it reached the final destination.

The door that was left ajar was eventually flung wide open, and that area (the dark region) turned into a "public inn"—a place where anyone could walk in and out freely.

And some of those serving at the top of those dim units began to see themselves as the true owners of the Jamaat…!

Just as "Deep State" actors see themselves as the "true owners of the motherland" and say, "Governments come and go, but we are permanent," some of the "special brothers" (hususî abiler) within the Jamaat viewed themselves in the same way. 

In time, they fell into the delusion that they were themselves the "state." 

This was their most fatal mistake.

By its very nature, this confidential structure applied "precautionary concealment" (tedbir) first and foremost against the rest of the Jamaat. They hid themselves from their own people above all else.

It couldn't have been any other way.

That is why when you tell a teacher who worked in Jamaat schools for years, a housewife who ran between charity events, a student who went door-to-door for subscription campaigns, or a tradesman who donated to the schools: "Certain units within the Jamaat gave exam questions (stolen) to specific names they selected," they react with an outcry as if you’ve stepped on an open wound.

Or, when you mention the existence of a phenomenon called "negative—meaning secret—services" within the Jamaat, they treat you like a slanderer.

Crimes such as “producing fake evidence” or “resorting to conspiracies” when deemed necessary “to purge rivals” in the state bureaucracy are so foreign to these people's world that they absolutely cannot place these actions side-by-side with the community they belong to. 

They cannot reconcile them. They cannot identify with them.

Consequently, they give very sharp reactions.

Just like water and olive oil… But they assume the entire glass is filled with water.

They say: "Should I believe what I have seen, read, listened to, experienced, and the people I’ve known in this community for all these years, or should I believe you? Our teacher’s (Hodjaeffendi’s) life, speeches, and works are out in the open. Do you expect me to believe your nonsense instead of these?"

This is, UNFORTUNATELY, the greatest success of the "confidential structure”…!

The Confidential Structure managed this separation so masterfully, and hid itself so well, that they cannot even come together in the cold like Schopenhauer’s porcupines...!

This is actually the answer to the questions directed at those who served in Jamaat-affiliated institutions in the past and are now offering criticisms: "Why didn't you tell these things before? Why are you speaking now as if you've just had an epiphany? Why weren't you saying this earlier? Was it fine while you were filling your pockets, but now that the Hizmet is losing, you’ve started to sing?"

As I said, that special structure applied its greatest "precautionary measures" against its very own base.

Almost everything began to come to light after the coup attempt of July 15th 2016. 

That is why, at the very beginning of my own independent journalistic journey, I penned an article titled "To Know and Not to Know." 

I introduced that piece with these sentences: "I believe this: a universe fits between knowing and not knowing. You may not know something. That is not a shame. At most, you experience the embarrassment of not learning. But if you know... the world is now a different place for you than it was a moment ago."

Speaking for myself : as someone who worked for Zaman newspaper for 15 years, I didn't know one percent of what I know today before July 15th 2016. 

I swear by God, I truly did not know...

In fact, thousands of people within the Jamaat are in the same situation.

Today, they are trying to understand what happened in a state of bewilderment.

If you do not make this distinction—if you look at it as if there is a homogeneous community before you, as if the principles are monolithic, and the leader has only one dimension—you cannot make sense of it.

Please do not look at what I will write from now on through the window of those in "Corner A." 

If you are a Hizmet volunteer and fall within that group, do not take it personally. 

This subject has nothing to do with you…!

Whatever I speak of, I will be speaking of what occurred in "Corner B."

Though, even if you wanted them to, olive oil and water do not mix anyway. No matter how much you stir them...!

Source:

https://www.ahmetdonmez.net/zeytinyagi-su-mahrem-hizmet/

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The following outline summarizes the core matters discussed in Ahmet Dönmez's above article :

“Olive Oil versus Water : Confidential Hizmet versus Public Hizmet”

I. The Dual-Structure Framework (Corner A versus Corner B)

The central thesis of the text is that the Gülen Movement is not a single, homogeneous entity but a bi-modular structure that can be visualized as a triangle.

• The Public Face (Corner A): This represents the "Hizmet" (Service) movement known to the world.
• Focus: Education, interfaith dialogue, and humanitarian aid.
• Ethics: Based on universal virtues, piety, and earning "God's pleasure".
• Participants: The vast majority of the movement’s base who believe the entire organization operates only in "broad daylight".
• The Confidential Pillar (Corner B): Referred to as Mahrem Hizmetler(Confidential Services).
• Focus: Infiltration of state bureaucracy, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.
• Ethics: Operates on a "grey" logic of pragmatism and "relative justice"(adalet-i izafiye), where minor evils are permitted to achieve a perceived "greater good".
• The Point of Union: Fethullah Gülen sits at the apex, leading both pillars simultaneously.

II. Philosophical & Legal Rationalization

Journalist Dönmez explains how the movement justifies the coexistence of these contradictory structures:

• The "Necessity" Doctrine: Illegal acts (like stealing exam questions to plant personnel in state offices) are framed as "inevitable measures" forced by Turkey’s harsh political conditions.
• Selective Jurisprudence: Gülen provides different "fatwas" (religious rulings) for each corner.
• To Corner A, he preaches that theft and lying are strictly haram (forbidden).
• To Corner B, he sanctions "surgical strikes" on the state, using the metaphor of a surgeon cutting widely to ensure "cancerous cells" (opponents) do not return. 

III. The "Olive Oil and Water" Metaphor

This metaphor describes the strict compartmentalization that allowed the movement to thrive while remaining opaque.

• Non-Mixing Layers: Like oil and water in a glass, the two pillars exist in the same container but never blend.
• Internal Deception: The "water" (the public base) believes the entire glass is filled only with water. They are kept in the dark about the "oil" (clandestine activities) through tedbir (precautionary concealment).
• Successful Concealment: This separation is so effective that when the public base hears accusations of state infiltration or conspiracy, they genuinely believe it is a "perception operation" or propaganda because it contradicts everything they see in their daily lives. 

IV. Root Causes: The "Genetics" of the Turkish State

Dönmez argues that the Mahrem (secret) structure was a response to the environment in which the movement grew:

• The Deep State Precedent: The Turkish state itself operates through a "Deep State" (derin devlet)—a lawless, arbitrary shadow structure that prioritizes its own survival over the law.
• The "Power or Nothing" Strategy: Gülen adopted a philosophy that one must be "everywhere or nowhere," believing that religious ideals could only flourish if the movement possessed actual state power. 

V. Fatal Mistakes and the "Public Inn"

The final portion of the text highlights the internal decay caused by this secrecy:

• The Delusion of Grandeur: Over time, the leaders of the Mahrem (secret) units began to see themselves as the "real owners" of the movement and eventually the state, leading to fatal strategic errors.
• The Transparency Crisis: Because the movement applied its harshest concealment against its very own followers, the 2016 coup attempt and subsequent purges left the base in total bewilderment, unable to reconcile their "pious" community with the "clandestine" crimes being revealed. 

Dönmez concludes that he personally did not know even "one percent" of these confidential activities despite working at the movement's flagship newspaper, Zaman, for 15 years.