Türkiye observed National Sovereignty and Children's Day on 23 April, with events held across the country. A delegation headed by Education Minister Huseyin Celik opened the day's proceedings at Anitkabir, Ataturk's mausoleum in Ankara. Rain forced the cancellation of children's programs scheduled for 19 Mayis Stadium, while in Istanbul, students from Indonesia, Poland, Bulgaria, South Korea, and Thailand joined festivities at Ali Sami Yen Stadium.
Parliament convened in a special session to mark both the holiday and the anniversary of the Turkish Grand National Assembly's founding. Speaker Bulent Arinc told lawmakers that the balance of powers in Türkiye was out of alignment and that the legislature had been weakened over time. He also criticized the so-called National Security Policy Document, arguing that secret governing arrangements are incompatible with democracy.
Main opposition Republican People's Party leader Deniz Baykal addressed the session as well, describing the assembly's 1923 opening as a transformative moment and calling secularism the foundation of democratic governance. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, and foreign ambassadors attended. Arinc later hosted a reception that drew several cabinet ministers and opposition party leaders.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in April 2006, in its own words.