Turkey on Monday celebrated National Sovereignty and Children's Day as well as the 98th anniversary of the foundation of parliament.
In the morning, top government officials and politicians attended a ceremony held at Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish Republic, including Parliament Speaker İsmail Kahraman, Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, and other dignitaries.
In remarks in the mausoleum's memorial guestbook, Kahraman wrote: "The Turkish Grand National Assembly [parliament], which you [Atatürk] presided over for the first time, continues its duty with great faith and dedication."
"Turkey will develop further and will always move forward," Kahraman added. "We commemorate you with these feelings."
The special day in Turkey is marked by a festival for children, and public offices, schools, and the private sector also hold programs.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a meeting with a group of children at the presidential complex, and symbolically gave his seat to Fatih Mintaş, age 12, as Turkey's head of state.
The sixth-grade student took questions from the press on current issues in Turkey.
Erdoğan later received children in his office.
Similarly, Yıldırım also convened a symbolic Cabinet meeting with children at the Çankaya Palace.
- THE NATION'S FUTURE
In his message marking the day, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said that reaching a happier and safer future is the only aim of Turkey's parliament both past and present.
Dedicating this important date to children and celebrating the "birthday of this parliament" with children is something else that sets Turkey's parliament apart from the rest of the world, Soylu added.
The Turkish General Staff celebrated the occasion with a special poster featuring the photos of children of martyred Turkish soldiers.
On Monday, on its Turkish homepage, Google featured a special doodle spelling out its name with a children's band marching, the Turkish flag leading the way.
The April 23 celebrations focus on children after Atatürk, the first speaker of the parliament, dedicated the day to children as the nation's future.
The Grand National Assembly or parliament met for the first time in 1920 in Ankara, the country's future capital, during the War of Independence to lay the foundations for an independent, secular and modern republic.
