Presidential Culture and Arts awards Ceremony organized

The 2012 Presidential Culture and Arts Grand Awards Ceremony was held on Thursday with the participation of President Abdullah Gul and First Lady Hayrunnisa Gül at the Cankaya Presidential Palace. Speaking at the ceremony, Gul said, "We have every right to be proud of the successes we have reached. However, one must remember that real accomplishments which crown civilizations are the gains they have in culture, arts and science as a matter of fact." Gul also said that the ceremony showed how important are the achievements and works of the awardees to the state, underlining the significant reforms Turkey has implemented in the last years in political, economic and legal areas, which has increased the self-confidence of citizens and changed Turkey’s image for the better in the international arena indeed.  The ceremony, attended by prominent representatives from circles of culture, art and science, started with a concert given by Goksel Baktagir, and then showed videos about Ahmet Hatipoglu, Selim Ileri, Professor Sukru Hanioglu and the province of Gaziantep and the ancient city of Zeugma. During the ceremony, awards were been presented to Ileri in literature, Hatipoglu in music, Hanioglu in history and the ancient city of Zeugma and Museum in archaeology.