Mustafa Kemal Atatürk: Reason, Science, and Modernity

I commemorate Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our Republic, with respect, gratitude, and deep sorrow.

He was a leader ahead of his time; he adopted reason as his guide, science as his method, and modernity as a way of life.

Atatürk’s vision was not a nation cut off from the world, but a society at peace with the world, self-confident and productive.

His understanding of modernization was not to imitate others, but to join the West and universal values.

Today, every young person who believes in science, every individual who defends freedom of thought, and every citizen who values intercultural dialogue is a quiet continuation of that legacy.

To commemorate Atatürk on November 10 is not to remember the past; it is to once again assume the responsibility of reason, science, and the modern person.

“My spiritual legacy is science and reason.”