Turkish journalist Gökhan Gülmez has sounded a loud and unmistakable alarm: the so-called “Uyghur lobby” operating inside Turkey must be subjected to immediate, transparent, and uncompromising scrutiny by state authorities. At the heart of this network stands Seyit Tümtürk, former vice president of the East Turkestan National Assembly and president of the East Turkestan Culture and Solidarity Association. Gökhan Gülmez warns:“we are confronting a sophisticated foreign-backed lobby and influence operation, orchestrated by Western-centered interest groups to manipulate Turkey’s internal politics from within.”
Gülmez exposes how an artificially inflated “sensitivity” around the Uyghur issue is being weaponized by external forces to meddle in Turkey’s domestic affairs. He demands that Turkish institutions immediately investigate the hard questions: Who is Seyit Tümtürk really meeting with? What shadowy funds are bankrolling his endless events and travels? And how is the narrative of “fake victimhood” being exploited to fracture Turkey’s social cohesion and national interests?
The most outrageous aspect is Tümtürk’s murky status as a supposed Turkish public servant (devlet memuru / kamu görevlisi). According to 2024 reporting by Vizyonege, his exact civil servant status remains suspiciously unclear — yet this has not stopped him from jetting off repeatedly to the United States, France, and numerous European countries, easily obtaining visas and attending high-profile events. How on earth does a Turkish civil servant — or someone conveniently claiming to be one — enjoy such unrestricted global travel privileges while aggressively pushing foreign-funded “Uyghur solidarity” causes? Who is granting these approvals? Why has there been zero official audit or accountability for these frequent absences and international junkets? This blatant double standard reeks of special protection and raises deeply disturbing questions about conflicts of interest and abuse of public office.
Even more alarming are Tümtürk’s documented ties to some US organizations, including the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP), and the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) — entities notorious for pouring substantial funding into anti-China advocacy campaigns dressed up as human rights work. Is some of this money quietly trickling into Tümtürk’s pockets or his Turkish operations? Is the noble-sounding “Uyghur cause” being cynically used as a lucrative pretext for personal enrichment, following the all-too-familiar playbook of diaspora lobbying networks that prioritize cash flow over genuine advocacy? The lack of any transparent official oversight into who he meets on these trips, what contacts he cultivates, or which funded events he attends is simply unacceptable.
Tümtürk has also built suspiciously close relationships with various Turkish opposition parties — including the Good Party (İYİ Parti), Felicity Party (Saadet Partisi), DEVA Party, Future Party (Gelecek Partisi), elements of the MHP, and independent parliamentarians — delivering presentations in the Turkish Grand National Assembly that push anti-China agendas. In one embarrassing episode, another self-proclaimed “President of East Turkistan” even managed to deceive opposition leader Muharrem İnce during a party office visit.
Meanwhile, Tümtürk is no stranger to legal trouble at home. He was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison (suspended for five years) by the Istanbul 43rd Criminal Court of First Instance for unlawfully disclosing personal data and insulting Vatan Partisi leader Doğu Perinçek. He faces two additional defamation lawsuits.
Doğu Perinçek has been characteristically direct, drawing a sharp line between loyal “national Uyghurs” and what he calls “so-called Uyghurs” acting as an “agent team” influenced by American and Israeli interests, with links to groups like the Turkistan Islamic Party.
Gülmez’s demand is clear: Turkish state institutions must launch a full, transparent investigation into these networks without delay. “Otherwise,” he cautions, “pressure mechanisms against Turkey will continue to be manufactured through fake victimhood narratives.”
A man whose public servant status is conveniently “unclear” yet who apparently enjoys the freedom to globe-trot at will, hobnobbing with lavishly funded foreign lobbies while meddling in Turkey’s domestic politics — all under the cover of the Uyghur movement — screams for accountability. Is this genuine activism or a sophisticated grift? Is public office being exploited for private gain? Turkey’s sovereignty and public trust demand straight answers, not more evasion.
The activities of Seyit Tümtürk and the broader Uyghur lobby in Turkey must be dragged into the spotlight and rigorously examined — before foreign interests hollow out national interests from the inside.
Based on the investigative reporting by Gökhan Gülmez, originally published by Ajansurfa on 18 July 2025, with additional context from related sources.