The Amasya Circular will continue to illuminate our path today

ADD Fethiye Branch President Filiz Topçu said in her statement, “Today, we are gathered here on the anniversary of the Amasya circular, a turning point in the Turkish Nation’s journey to independence. During the process we are going through, we see once again how vital the rule of law, democracy, secular Republic, and the will of the nation are.

We will not remain silent against all kinds of erosion attempts aimed at the founding values of our Republic. We will not step back. The Amasya circular is the nation’s will to rise against enslavement, submission, mandate, and protection. Our Great Leader Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’s phrase “The nation's will will be saved by the nation’s determination and decision again” still lights our way today. With these feelings and thoughts, I hand over the floor to our board member Ms. Tuğçe Güçlü to make the press statement,” she said.

“THE AMASYA CIRCULAR IS THE DECLARATION OF NATIONAL WILL AGAINST THOSE WHO SEIZED THE NATION'S FATE”

Tuğçe Güçlü, a board member of ADD Fethiye branch, explained the meaning and importance of the day: “The Amasya Circular, published on June 22, 1919, is a historic manifesto in which the Turkish nation declared to the whole world that it would not accept slavery, would not bow to mandate and protection, and would never give up its independence and sovereignty. The Amasya Circular is not just a document but the first significant political and revolutionary declaration marking the path from a collapsing empire’s darkness to an independent Republic. At that time, the homeland was under occupation. The nation was in poverty. Armies were disbanded, shipyards were occupied, ports were taken over, and imperialist forces were rampant throughout the country. The palace and submissive circles had fallen into the mistake of entrusting the fate of the nation to the occupiers’ mercy. In such a grave period, Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and his comrades in arms addressed the entire nation from Amasya and inscribed the following unwavering determination into history:

“THE NATION'S INDEPENDENCE WILL AGAIN BE SAVED BY THE NATION’S DETERMINATION AND DECISION”

This phrase sums up the rebirth of a nation. It is the clearest response to palaces, mandators, collaborators, and imperialism. This phrase is the cornerstone of the Republic, popular sovereignty, full independence, and reforms. With the Amasya Circular, it was openly declared for the first time that the path to liberation was not in the will of any one person, faction, palace, foreign state, or guardianship entity, but directly in the nation's determination and decision. Therefore, the Amasya Circular is the preface to the founding philosophy of the Republic of Turkey.

It is one of the strongest starting points of the process leading to the Erzurum Congress, the Sivas Congress, the opening of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, and ultimately the declaration of the Republic. Today, we must correctly interpret the meaning carried by the Amasya Circular. Because the will rising from Amasya is not only a memory of the past but also a Republic compass lighting our way today. Any approach that undermines the rule of law, questions the will of the nation, erodes the secular Republic values, sees democracy as merely ballot boxes, and discredits the Republic's institutions is against the spirit of national sovereignty declared at Amasya.

“THE VOICE RISING FROM AMASYA STILL ILLUMINATES OUR PATH TODAY”

We state openly; the will of the nation cannot be ignored. The founding values of the Republic are not negotiable. There can be no retreat from secularism, law, democracy, and full independence. The Republic of Turkey is not a country to be directed by communities, sects, interest groups, or submissive mindsets. This country is the work of a nation led by Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk who brought imperialism to its knees. This Republic was established on the battlefields, in congress halls, at the parliament podiums, and in the hearts of the nation.

The Amasya Circular has shown us that when a nation takes ownership of its fate, no force can stop its march to independence. Our duty today is to carry the torch of independence lit in Amasya without letting it go out. It is to firmly defend Atatürk’s principles and revolutions, secularism, scientific education, rule of law, gender equality, and national sovereignty. As the Atatürkist Thought Association, we declare once again; we are against all approaches trying to erode the achievements of the Republic. We are against every mentality that wants to replace national sovereignty with a culture of submission. We are against every attempt that imposes dogma instead of reason and science, and servitude instead of citizenship consciousness. We are determined to defend the Republic of Turkey, founded by Atatürk as a secular, democratic, and social state of law, to the end. On the 107th anniversary of the Amasya Circular, we respectfully, gratefully, and compassionately commemorate the founder of our Republic, our Great Leader Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, as well as all heroes of the National Struggle. The legacy they left us is clear: Full independence. Unconditional national sovereignty.

Secular and democratic Republic. The guidance of reason and science. The goal of contemporary civilization. Protecting this legacy is not just a commemorative duty; it is a historical responsibility for today’s and tomorrow’s Turkey. The voice rising from Amasya continues to illuminate our path today. The nation’s independence will again be saved by the nation’s determination and decision. With this faith, we shout once again: Long live the fully independent Republic of Turkey! Long live national sovereignty! Long live the secular, democratic Republic! Long live the revolutionary path of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk!”