Making wolf signs and hurling flowers on his car, a group of youth welcomed Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli to a massive gathering in the capital Ankara on Tuesday. Organized by Idealists’ Clubs Education and Culture Foundation, an affiliate of the party, the Great Congress of Turkish Youth brought together youngsters from across the country on the national holiday Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day.
Addressing a packed, enthusiastic sports hall filled with thousands, Bahçeli expressed his immense pride and deep emotion at the spectacle.
"I feel immense pride from this magnificent sight, from the enthusiasm that surrounds this hall from end to end, and from the love for our ideal," Bahçeli declared. "I am overjoyed to witness the future of our sublime nation and the young members of the Turkish-Islamic cause."
The MHP leader emphasized that the youth standing before him carry the ancient strength of Ergenekon, the determination of Malazgirt, and the independence torch of Samsun. He noted that exactly 109 years after May 19, 1919, the sun of freedom continues to shine brightly in the eyes of the Turkish youth, proving the enduring strength and resilience of the nationalist movement shaping the Republic of Türkiye. He was referring to the campaign by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the republic, which started on May 19, 1919, when he set foot in Samsun in northern Türkiye. He arrived from Istanbul. Atatürk’s tour of Anatolia and participation in several congresses paved the way for a future struggle for an independent Türkiye that rose from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire.
