90th Anniversary of the Republic of Turkey

Below is H.E. President Abdullah Gül’s message on the 90^th anniversary of the Republic of Turkey

"My fellow citizens,

We are celebrating the 90^th anniversary of our Republic with great joy and happiness. I am sending my love and best wishes to you all during our biggest festival and on this day of pride for us.

Our Republic today is 90 years old. This meaningful day enables us to evaluate the level we have reached and review our targets for the future.

The Republic is the consequence of the unprecedented struggle the Turkish nation made under the leadership of Great Atatürk, its dignified stance and its will to protect sovereignty and independence.

A historic accomplishment during the War of Independence and the foundation of the Republic of Turkey as a result of Atatürk’s leadership and our parliament’s gallant verdicts were a prescient step that eternizes our thousand-year long sovereignty in Anatolia.

The achievements of our Republic, the huge progress it has made in almost 100 years and the esteemed place it has in its region and in the world are all sources of pride for us indeed.

90 years is not long in the life of a nation. Taking this into consideration, we can see that our Republic has taken root and it has been espoused by our people. Today, our Republic and its achievements have become a consensus among our people more than it was thought. Our citizens have no doubts about this fact.

I see it as a quintessential accomplishment and source of pride that Turkey, which was devastated due to wars fought for years and which suffered from many hardships, has turned into a modern state with the great level it has reached today.

My dear citizens,

The most important virtues of the Republic are equality, freedom and free will. The fundamental principles of the Republic, which is based on the sovereignty of the nation and which takes its strength from the national will, are to guarantee individual rights and freedoms, provide everyone with equal opportunities and establish a rule of law which will create a sense of justice among the people. Everyone is a noble and free citizen with equal rights, and everyone is the real owner of the Republic without any discrimination.

The most typical characteristic of our Republic is that it is a democratic, secular and social law state. These basic features, when we consider the recent developments in our region, demonstrate that the Republic of Turkey, from the very beginning, was founded on robust foundations. The flow of history, as a matter of fact, strikingly shows how significant and appropriate are the very principles and values upon which our country is based.

It is an unquestionable fact that Turkey is enjoying its strongest era. I would like to reiterate with pride that Turkey, thanks to the efforts which have been made for 90 years and which have especially gained momentum in recent years, has achieved great development and important transformations. In parallel to these achievements, our democracy has reached a level of maturity.

Turkey’s modernization process, its rising standards of democracy, its pluralist parliamentarian system, its growing economy, its political stability and the level it has reached as a soft power are all being followed with great care and interest. I am here talking about a Turkey, whose area of influence is wide, which is regarded as a source of inspiration and taken as a role model with its elements of soft power, its achievements and what its democratic regime offers. With its democratic regime that is based on modern values, Turkey is a shining star in its region.

My fellow citizens,

The leg of democracy of the Republic has always been lame. We all experienced what a deficient democracy caused before. Turkey has made great progress toward crowning our Republic with a modern democracy. The radical reforms, which have been implemented in recent years, while broadening freedoms, strengthened the foundations of a modern state and social order which is based on the rule of law. It is a fact that the democratization of our Republic is the biggest achievement of our country in recent years.

These show that Turkey is progressing toward its objective “to reach the level beyond the modern states” not only economically, politically, militarily and in terms of humanity but also in terms of democracy.

The position Turkey is standing at today is the culmination of the common efforts and will for modernization of our nation-from all of our leaders including Atatürk, who was the founder of our Republic, and our political parties, to profession experts and NGOs.

It makes our country and nation different from others that they have solved their own problems with their own will so far. I have no doubt that we will overcome our problems in peace step by step, with a democratic maturity and sagacity and through dialogue.

All nations have ups and downs in history. Although its democratic process was sometimes interrupted and much as its economic problems negatively influenced its momentum of development, Turkey has always faced forward, never losing its will to overcome problems.

Turkey today is progressing toward its targets with a strong vision. It is on its way with huge projects which befit its greatness and which are admired by others. Our basic priority is to build more on the achievements of our Republic in the future.

We are aware of the deficiencies we still have despite the important distance we have covered. We are making tireless efforts so that Turkey can reach a better level in the index of human development and in order that it can catch the developed countries in such areas as democracy, economy, culture, arts, health, infrastructure, science and technology and environment. We attach special importance to the rising of democracy and economy hand in hand.

We will mark the centenary of our Republic in a decade. Achieving a Turkey, which has successfully concluded its accession talks with the EU, taken its place among the biggest economies, reached the standards of the most developed countries and which is playing an active role in all areas globally, will also be the carrier of the goal “to reach beyond the level of the modern states”. The current indications demonstrate that these targets can be achieved. Besides, the accomplishments of our Republic which are making us all very proud give us this confidence.

In this vein, I celebrate the Republic Day of our citizens in and out of the country, of our children who will be the architects of our future and of our youth.

I remember the founder of the Turkish Republic, Atatürk, his comrades-in-arms and all our august martyrs and war veterans who made this land our land with tribute and gratitude. I am sending my sincere love and greetings to all of our citizens."