ANKARA - April 23rd, National Sovereignty and Children`s Day, will be celebrated with a series of events and ceremonies in Turkey, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and foreign missions abroad.
Initially a ceromony will be held in the first Turkish Parliament building in Ankara. Turkey`s Parliament Speaker Koksal Toptan will deliver a speech at this ceremony.
Later a ceremony will be held at the 19th May stadium where students will put on shows. National education minister, Ankara`s governor and mayor will attend this ceremony.
Under the celebrations, children will visit top government officials including the President and the Prime Minister. Symbolically these officials will give their seats to children, and the children will assume their titles for a short time.
As April 23rd is also the date Turkish Parliament was established in 1920, a series of events will be held at the parliament to celebrate the 88th anniversary of its establishment.
The General Assembly will convene with a special agenda and Speaker Koksal Toptan will make the opening speech which will be followed by speeches by the Prime Minister and opposition leaders.
A formal reception will be held at the Ceremonial Hall in the parliament. Later celebrations will be concluded with a laser and fireworks show to take place at the parliament`s yard.
Ankara Municipality is also organising a series of events to celebrate April 23rd. A cortege of cartoon characters and super heroes will march through the city from Altinpark to downtown Ankara. Also well-known Turkish singers Sibel Can and Ferhat Gocer will give concerts in main square, Kizilay where the cortege will end in the evening. The celebrations will end with audio-visual shows.

-DEDICATION OF APRIL 23RD TO CHILDREN-
The founder of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, dedicated April 23rd to the children of the country to emphasize that they are the future of the new nation. It was on April 23rd, 1920, during the War of Independence, that the Grand National Assembly met in Ankara and laid down the foundations of a new, independent, secular, and modern republic from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire. Following the defeat of the Allied invasion forces on September 9th, 1922 and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne on July 24th, 1923, Ataturk started his task of establishing the institutions of the new state. Over the next eight years, Ataturk and his followers adopted sweeping reforms to create a modern Turkey, divorced from her Ottoman past. In unprecedented moves, he dedicated the sovereignty day to the children and entrusted in the hands of the youth the protection of this sovereignty and independence.
Every year on Apr. 23rd, the children in Turkey celebrate this ``Sovereignty and Children`s Day`` as a national holiday. Schools participate in week-long ceremonies marked by performances in all fields in large stadiums watched by the entire nation. Among the activities on this day, the children send their representatives to replace state officials and high ranking bureaucrats in their offices. The President, the Prime Minister, the Cabinet Ministers, provincial governors all turn over their positions to children`s representatives. These children, in turn, sign executive orders relating to educational and environmental policies. On this day, the children also replace the parliamentarians in the Grand National Assembly and hold a special session to discuss matters concerning children`s issues.

-INTERNATIONAL DAY-
Over the last two decades, the Turkish officials have been working hard to internationalize this important day. Their efforts resulted in large number of world states` sending groups of children to Turkey to participate in the above stated festivities. During their stay in Turkey, the foreign children are housed in Turkish homes and find an important opportunity to interact with the Turkish kids and learn about each other`s countries and cultures. The foreign children groups also participate in the special session of the Grand National Assembly. This results in a truly international Assembly where children pledge their commitment to international peace and brotherhood. The importance of April 23rd as a special day of children has been recognized by the international community. UNICEF also decided to recognize this important day as the International Children`s Day.
(OZG-MS)