Istanbul Armenian Doctor’s Fertility Center Closed Down as Part of State of Emergency

ISTANBUL (Agos) — A decree having force of law was passed as part of state of emergency in Turkey, 3 universities, 140 schools, 150 associations, 15 foundations and 4 medical centers have been closed down on the ground that they “belong to, are connected or in communication with” Fethullah Gülen’s organization.

On July 25, Istanbul Fertility Center, which was founded and directed by surgeon Aret Kamar, was seized and closed down after the inspection carried out by officials from ministry of health, district governor’s office and treasury. The reason was center’s alleged support to so-called “parallel structure” of Gulenists.

Stating that he is Armenian and Christian and has nothing to do with Fethullah Gülen, Aret Kamar said: “We have absolutely no connection with that organization. However, since our center is closed down by the decision of cabinet, we cannot take any legal action.”

Aret Kamer founded this fertility center 11 years ago and he is the senior partner with his 61,5% share. Speaking to Agos, Kamar stated: “They closed down the company. They need evidence for the alleged support in order to close down the company. I have been auditing and our financial consultant has been checking. This company hasn’t sent money to any association or foundation.”

Answering our question whether some partners are Gulenist, Kamar said: “Other partners are Faruk Bener with 25% share and Nahit Karabeyoglu with 13,5%. We are all doctors. Our center has been very busy and we have no time to engage in such activities. It is obvious that I am not a member of such an organization and I don’t know about my partners’ relations. How can I know what they are doing in their private life? I am the founder and the senior partner of this company. It is unacceptable to close down the whole center because of the activities of an individual. Besides, there is no evidence of such an activity.”

Kamar told about what happened: “Our center is closed down upon a single report from the intelligence service. They confiscated the properties and medical equipment. They left nothing. They took the cash in the center. They did all these without any investigation. They came on Saturday morning and completed the process by midnight.”

Stating that the center has been operating for 11 years and treating an average of 200 patients in a day, Kamar said: “They took confidential records of 40,000 patients and this was the saddest part. They don’t have the right. Also, they transferred the embryos to Koç University.” Kamar said that they have been trying to contact the authorities, but they have nothing else to do.