President and Justice and Development (AK) Party Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made a speech at the Human Rights Day Event in Ankara
Delivering remarks at the Human Rights Day Event, President Erdoğan said: “Wherever there is an innocent or an oppressed person, we have defended their rights. We have not applauded the oppression. Rather, we have stood for justice, even at the cost of paying the price when necessary. In both the Gaza atrocities and the Syrian crisis, we have never left our brothers and sisters alone.”
President and Justice and Development (AK) Party Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made a speech at the Human Rights Day Event in Ankara.
“WE HAVE WITNESSED SEVERE HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN MANY PARTS OF THE WORLD”
Noting that 76 years have passed as of yesterday since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, President Erdoğan said: “The Declaration is a document which is referenced the most in the world while its content is not applied with the same level of diligence. Comprised of 30 articles, this important document states in its first article that all human beings are free and that all members of the human family are equal in dignity and rights. The Declaration was announced with great hope for humanity’s future, but unfortunately, over time, it has been undermined, and rendered ineffective particularly by states that hold the power in their hands.”
Pointing out that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted in 1948, President Erdoğan highlighted that that very same year also marks the date when Israel started to wreak terror in Palestine.
“THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IS UNDERMINED THE MOST BY THOSE WHO CLAIM TO BE DEFENDING IT”
Stressing that since that year, Israel has continued to usurp and invade the lands of the Palestinian people and to exile the true owners of those lands, President Erdoğan stated: “The adoption of the document has been unable to prevent not only Israel’s disregard for law, but also the forced migrations and the policies of pressure and assimilation inflicted on our cognates in the Balkans. From Srebrenica to the Rwandan genocide, in which 800 thousand people were killed, we have witnessed severe human rights violations in many parts of the world. While our brothers and sisters were dying in Khojaly, while Iraq and Afghanistan were being invaded, while people were being tortured in Abu Ghraib, while history’s most brutal atrocities were taking place in our neighbor Syria just as we see today, and, in short, while the Declaration was being blatantly trampled upon, we heard nothing from those who claim to be defenders of human rights and democracy.”
President Erdoğan noted that the same double standards were also repeatedly displayed on issues concerning Türkiye. Stating that Türkiye’s thousands of children, mostly civilians, have died a martyr’s death in terrorist attacks, President Erdoğan said: “We have countless people who have been tortured to death just because they have rejected to bow to the separatist terror. Likewise, our 252 people were treacherously martyred by FETO-member traitors on the night of July 15. Yet, while our country was criticized during all these incidents, the murderers who massacred innocent people were backed and glorified by western countries. It is thus an obvious truth that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is undermined the most by those who claim to be defending it across the world.”
“THE DEFINITION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IS BEING NARROWED DOWN BASED ON COLOR, RACE, ORIGIN AND RELIGION”
Stressing that human rights are perceived as privileged rights applied only to a certain region of the world and a specific population, President Erdoğan said: “Despite all the statements to the contrary, in essence, the definition of human rights is being narrowed down based on color, race, origin and religion. While the white man enjoys an indefinite freedom in the exercise of all of the rights listed in the Declaration, the rest of the humanity can benefit from just certain rights. This class-based insincerity and hypocritical policies are the main cause of the regression seen in the commitment to human rights around the world.”
“WE ARE ONE OF THE TOP COUNTRIES IN THE SUPPORT EXTENDED TO PALESTINE”
Underlining that Türkiye has always been a safe and affectionate harbor for the innocents throughout its history, President Erdoğan stated: “We did not question those who pleaded for help if they were Turkish, Arab, or Kurdish. We did not question those who sought our help if they were Muslim, Christian, or Jewish. We have never asked anyone seeking refuge in Türkiye, ‘Are you white or black?’ We have opened wide both the doors of our country and the doors of our hearts to all those in need without questioning their identity, faith, or the color of their skin.”
President Erdoğan went onto say: Wherever there is an innocent or an oppressed person, we have defended their rights. We have not applauded the oppression. Rather, we have stood for justice, even at the cost of paying the price when necessary. In both the Gaza atrocities and the Syrian crisis, we have never left our brothers and sisters alone. With 86 thousand tons of humanitarian aid, we are one of the top countries in the support extended to Palestine. It is also Türkiye which displayed the strongest reaction to the Israeli government by halting all trade. We are also providing all the help in our power to our Lebanese brothers and sisters.”
“TÜRKİYE HAS ALWAYS APPROACHED THE SYRIAN CRISIS FROM A CONSCIENTIOUS PERSPECTIVE”
Stressing that Türkiye, with its state and nation, successfully passed the test of humanity in Syria, President Erdoğan said: “Since the first day, our stance on this issue has been clear; our words and actions are clear. Türkiye has always approached the Syrian crisis from a conscientious perspective. In this difficult time, we endeavored to fulfill the requirements of being a human, a Muslim, and a neighbor. Thank Allah, for 13 years, we hosted, in a spirit of ‘Ansar’, our Syrian guests in the most beautiful manner.”
