Nation gratefully commemorates Ataturk on 71st anniversay of his passing away

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, is being commemorated today, the 71st anniversary of his death on Nov. 10, 1938. All across the country, daily life and traffic stop each year at 9:05 a.m., when Ataturk passed away, as sirens wail and people observe two minutes of silence. Flags across the country are flown at half-staff. President Abdullah Gul and pillars of the Turkish state delivered messages yesterday stressing the founding father's vision. "One of his most important successes was the establishment of the republic, dynamic and open to innovation. Turkey today continues its progress in a way that its founders envisioned," Gul stated. "Our country is attaining a great stature worldwide. I am fully confident that with its economy, democracy and military, Turkey will continue to increase its weight in the international arena." The first official ceremony today will be held at Anitkabir, Ataturk's mausoleum. Top state officials will attend the ceremony led by Gul, who will lay a wreath on the tomb at 9:05 a.m. Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Sahin, Chief of General Staff Gen. Ilker Basbug, and political leaders all issued messages yesterday hailing Ataturk's achievements. In his message, Basbug said Ataturk shouldn't be just a memory in people's hearts. "We carry our leader, who brought our nation into the civilized world of the future in unity and safety, in our hearts not like a memory but as a living reality that directs our thoughts," Basbug said. Born in 1881 in Thessalonica, Ataturk was a distinguished army officer, revolutionary statesman, and the founder of the Republic of Turkey as well as its first president. He became known as an extremely capable military officer during World War I. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, he led the Turkish national movement in the War of Independence. Having established a provisional government in Ankara, he defeated forces sent by the Allies. His successful military campaigns led to the country's liberation and the establishment of Turkey. During his presidency, Ataturk embarked upon a program of major political, economic and cultural reforms to transform the country into a modern, democratic and secular nation-state.