What is the meaning and significance of October 29 Republic Day?

The proclamation of the Republic was the greatest factor in laying the foundations for a democratic and secular state structure in Turkey. In governance, the will of the people is expressed through elections, and this grants citizens the right to participate in the decision-making process. It is also a symbol of the founding of modern Turkey. During this process, many reforms were carried out in law, the economy, education, and social life. The purpose of these reforms was to ensure Turkey's integration into the contemporary world. 

WHAT HAPPENED ON OCTOBER 29?

Republic Day is a national holiday celebrated every year on October 29 in Turkey and Northern Cyprus to commemorate the Grand National Assembly of Turkey's proclamation of the Republic administration on October 29, 1923. With a law enacted in 1925, this special day began to be celebrated as a national holiday.

In Turkey and Northern Cyprus, where Republic Day is celebrated, a one-and-a-half-day public holiday is observed, starting from the afternoon of October 28 and continuing throughout October 29. On this date, festivities are organized in stadiums, and celebrations continue in the evenings with traditional torchlight processions.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, referred to this day as the "greatest holiday" in his Tenth Year Speech, which he delivered on October 29, 1933, during the tenth-anniversary celebrations of the Republic.

HOW WAS THE REPUBLIC FOUNDED?

The Ottoman Empire was governed by an absolute monarchy until 1876, and by a constitutional monarchy between 1876-1878 and 1908-1918. Following the defeat in World War I, Anatolia was occupied; however, the people, under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Pasha, launched the National Struggle against this occupation, and this struggle ended with the victory of national forces in 1923. During this process, the "Grand National Assembly," consisting of representatives of the people, convened in Ankara on April 23, 1920, and declared that sovereignty belonged to the Turkish nation with the Law of Fundamental Organization (Teşkilat-ı Esasiye Kanunu) adopted on January 20, 1921. With the decision taken on November 1, 1922, the sultanate was abolished, and the country began to be governed by the assembly government.

On October 27, 1923, following the resignation of the Executive Council and the subsequent inability to form a cabinet that would gain the assembly's confidence, Mustafa Kemal Pasha prepared a draft law amendment together with İsmet İnönü for the form of government to be a Republic and submitted it to the Assembly on October 29, 1923. With the acceptance of these amendments to the Law of Fundamental Organization, the Republic was proclaimed by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. The proclamation of the Republic was announced in Ankara with a 101-gun salute, and it was celebrated in a festive atmosphere throughout the country, especially in Ankara, on the night of October 29 and on October 30, 1923.

News Source: 12punto