UPDATE - Türkiye celebrates National Sovereignty and Children's Day

UPDATES WITH STATEMENTS FROM VICE PRESIDENT, FIRST LADY

By Busra Nur Cakmak

ANKARA (AA) – Türkiye on Sunday celebrated its National Sovereignty and Children’s Day and the 103rd anniversary of the foundation of the country’s parliament.

National Education Minister Mahmut Ozer kicked off the day by accompanying a group of children on a visit to the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Turkish Republic, in the capital Ankara.

The Turkish nation has full “faith and confidence … in our children, to whom we will entrust our holy homeland,” Ozer said in his message.

He also praised Ataturk and the Turkish parliamentarians who led the country’s War of Independence.

Later, Vice President Fuat Oktay, Parliament Speaker Mustafa Sentop, and other government officials also visited Ataturk’s mausoleum, which is called Anitkabir.

“I sincerely congratulate the 103rd anniversary of the establishment of our Turkish Grand National Assembly and the April 23 National Sovereignty and Children’s Day of our children, who are the guarantee of our future, and I commemorate with gratitude all the heroes of our national struggle, especially Gazi Mustafa Kemal Ataturk,” Oktay said in a tweet.​​​​​​​

First Lady Emine Erdogan also issued a statement on Twitter.

​​​​​​​“The hope of Türkiye, who will proudly fly our noble flag for centuries, is our children. I wish the excitement in their eyes and the determination to succeed in their hearts never diminishes, and I embrace each of them with love,” she said.

The National Sovereignty and Children’s Day in Türkiye is marked by a festival for children, as well as special events at public offices, schools, and in the private sector.

The celebrations focus on children after Ataturk dedicated the day to children as the nation’s future.

The Turkish Grand National Assembly met for the first time in Ankara in 1920 during the War of Independence to lay the foundations for an independent, secular, and modern republic.