Little ladies, little gentlemen

It was not for nothing.

That he constantly called children “Little Ladies, little Gentlemen!”

“You are all a rose, a star, a glimmer of happiness for the future! You are the ones who will truly bathe the country in light. Think of how important and valuable you are and work accordingly. We expect much from you.”

The one who said this was, of course, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

The place was Bursa.

Bursa had just been liberated. The black shroud had been lifted from the podium of the Grand National Assembly.

Atatürk arrived at the City Hall on October 17, 1922. A child greeted him there with a bouquet in hand. He took the bouquet and embraced the child.

At that very moment, a storm of applause erupted.

It was not easy. Bursa had remained under occupation for two years; the enemy had trampled the soil of Bursa with their filthy soles for two years.

Atatürk’s view of children was different.

It was completely different.

He always treated them not like small people, but like great people.

In March 1922, Mustafa Kemal conducted a series of inspections in Konya to oversee the Afyon front. After the Battle of Çanakkale and especially the Battle of Sakarya, he was welcomed everywhere he went as a great hero and savior. On April 1, 1922, he went to Ilgın, Konya. The people of Ilgın also welcomed Mustafa Kemal at the entrance of the district. There were children among them. When Mustafa Kemal saw the children, he showed them special attention.

“How are you, little ladies? Little gentlemen,” he addressed them.

But today, look and see that children are left to their own fate.

The President kisses the hands of Arab children, while looking down on Turkish children and hitting them on the head; the former prime minister Ahmet Davutoğlu grabs a child by the head and lifts them into the air like a watermelon.

A minister stands up and, grinning, makes a statement about children who have been raped, saying, “Nothing will happen from just one time,” while a Deputy Prime Minister can say of a child who has been raped, “The minor gave consent.”

They can find this courage within themselves.

Do these individuals, who encourage society with such statements and leave children defenseless, have no fault at all?

What kind of country have we become?

No one says a single word in favor of children, their safety, or their protection.

And the result of these statements is clear.

Just recently, 8-year-old Narin Güran was brutally murdered.

Not a day goes by in this country without hearing news of children who have been raped, molested, and lost their lives.

Yet, Atatürk had shown care and drawn attention to this issue.

"Children must be protected from all kinds of neglect and abuse; they must be treated more specially than adults under all circumstances," he had said, and added, "Today's little ones are tomorrow's grown-ups."

He had addressed children as if they were the future leaders of the country.

That is why he would say “Little Ladies, little Gentlemen!” and show them respect, even beyond love.

As a President, he would set an example for everyone with this behavior, showing that he stood firmly behind the children.

We don't say "take Atatürk as an example" for nothing.

If a President shows special interest in children, just let someone try to look at them the wrong way.

Remember,

Erdoğan had hit a child on the head who cut the ribbon early at a tunnel opening.

If you hit a small child on the head in front of all of Turkey,

You belittle them. You look down on them. You render them worthless.

You make them defenseless.

The guilt, of course, lies with those who brutally murdered Narin Güran.

We must deem every kind of curse deserved for them, but,

What should we say to those who look down on children, render them worthless, and leave them open to abuse?