On the 100th anniversary of the Republic, Bilkent University students, faculty members and staff appeared before Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic.
All Bilkent members visited Anıtkabir, Atatürk’s final resting place, on Monday, October 16. At 9:30 a.m., Bilkenters walked the 262-meter-long Lion’s Alley (Aslanlı Yol) and proceeded to Ceremony Square. They proceeded through the hall of honor and paid their respects to Atatürk’s mausoleum.
At the end of the ceremony, Rector Prof. Kürşat Aydoğan signed the Anıtkabir Special Book in the Misak-ı Milli Tower at the entrance of the Atatürk and War of Independence Museum. He included the following statement in his letter:
“Great Atatürk, Founder of the Republic of Turkey,
We are here today at Anıtkabir, your eternal resting place, with the young people to whom you entrusted the Republic of Turkey. The Republic draws its strength from full independence, democracy, law and civilization.
Bilkent University, where we stand before you with its students, faculty and staff, has been proudly carrying the torch of education and science since 1984 with the guidance and enlightenment of the University Reform you realized with your profound vision.
As Bilkent, if our graduates find employment all over the world today, if we are able to open our doors to students from all over Turkey and the world, if we can proudly proclaim the scientific contributions of our faculty members, it is because we have never forgotten your precious words: ‘On the path of development and civilization, the torch in the hands and mind of Turkish people is positive science.’
The republic is the indestructible work of our struggle for independence, which you led with unparalleled genius; it is also the totality of the revolutions you spread to every aspect of life with the goal of a modern society. Our sole aim is to contribute to the preservation of this integrity under the leadership of science.
Our republic, whose 100th anniversary we celebrate with enthusiasm in the footsteps of your revolutions, is in safe hands. We will work tirelessly to take our country even further and to be worthy of your trust.
We offer our eternal gratitude to you for the modern Republic of Turkey and your great achievements.”
