President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan celebrated National Sovereignty and Children's Day with dozens of youngsters in the capital Ankara, the Directorate of Communications said Tuesday.
Erdoğan chatted with children from across Türkiye and the broader Turkic world who were wearing traditional clothes and waving Turkish flags at a ceremony at the Presidential Complex.
He also watched a group of children perform a song and a dance for him during the ceremony.
Separately, he handed over his Cabinet seats to a group of children for the occasion, a tradition annually fulfilled by state officials.
“I congratulate the 104th anniversary of the foundation of the Turkish Parliament and the Children's Day of all children in Türkiye,” the Turkish leader said in a message on X as festivities kicked off nationwide to commemorate the milestone.
“I hope our children, the assurance of our future, get to live every day with the festive joy of this day,” Erdoğan said, sending his regards to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Türkiye who gifted April 23 to the children.
Türkiye marks April 23, Parliament's opening anniversary, as a festival for children, while public offices, schools and citizens also hold programs.
The celebrations have been dedicated to children since the early days of the country at Atatürk’s instruction. They last for a week and are marked with ceremonies and performances recognizing children as the nation’s future.
The Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) met for the first time in Ankara in 1920 during the War of Independence to lay the foundations for an independent, secular and modern republic.
