President Erdoğan’s Message on Human Rights Day
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Message on Human Rights Day.
“I celebrate the Human Rights Day of my citizens and the whole world on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
We welcome another Human Rights Day at a time regrettably when the most fundamental human rights, including the right to life, continue to be violated in the regions close to our hearts, from Syria to Iraq, from Arakan to Palestine, and the hundreds of thousands of children in Yemen are falling victim to conflicts of interest.
This shameful image in the name of humanity, shows us that the international community still has a long way to go in upholding the principles and sensitivities set by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The incompetence of international mechanisms responsible for ensuring security, peace, and stability throughout the world, such as the United Nations Security Council, is one of the most important factors making human rights violations so common.
Thus encouraged by the silence of the international community, Israel is able to recklessly continue its policies of occupation, deportation and oppression in the Palestinian territories.
The mentality that puts self-interest above human life, that makes distinctions between terrorist organizations, that alters its attitude depending on the identity of the oppressed or the oppressor, renders the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the eyes of hundreds of millions of people meaningless.
In this picture while maintaining its fight for justice on a global scale starting with its neighboring countries, Turkey has also domestically put into practice several comprehensive reforms in order to strengthen its democracy.
The creation of the Turkish Human Rights and Equality Institution and the Ombudsman Institution, the introduction of the right to file an individual application to the Constitutional Court; the removal of certain bans which were restricting the fundamental rights and freedoms of our citizens are only part of the revolutionary steps that have been taken in the last sixteen years.
With the inception of the implementation of the Presidential Government System, our country’s will and determination for reform has been further strengthened.
Turkey, in line with the spirit of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and inspired by its history and traditional values, will continue to expand the areas of freedom of its citizens in the upcoming period.
With these thoughts, I would like to congratulate once again my citizens’ Human Rights Day, hoping that it will contribute to peace, justice and serenity all over the world.”
