Political Scientist Çetin Sağsöz writes: Hey Republic, what a beautiful form of government you are!

The Republic is such a form of government that…

It grants a space for freedom even to those who are not free.

It recognizes neither class nor gender… It looks neither at belief nor at identity.

It is the essence of equality, the voice of justice, and the very embodiment of the people's will!

But how painful it is that…

Today, some who have gained the right to vote and be elected thanks to the Republic mistake this right for a favor and openly betray that great legacy.

They do not hesitate to attack the Republic and its universal values.

Palaces and sultanates collapse…

But the mentality etched into the human subconscious does not collapse easily.

This is exactly where we stand.

A segment that grew up in the environment of freedom offered by the Republic is today disregarding that freedom and taking sides against it.

They are turning the hostility they have internalized into an overt opposition without feeling the need to hide it anymore.

Yet there is a truth they have forgotten, or perhaps chosen to ignore:

That historic statement by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is not just a warning, but also a call to duty:

"We founded the Republic; you are the ones who will protect and uphold it."

So who is this "you"?

Only the members of a party?

No! The side of the Republic is the nation itself.

The farmer, the worker, the doctor, the teacher, the retiree, the youth, the woman…

Those living in the village, those living in the city…

Even those who fancy themselves economists or pharmacists!

The Republic belongs to us all. And protecting it is the duty of us all.

Today, remaining silent in the face of hostility toward the Republic is an open betrayal.

Millions of people in these lands grew up with the blessings of the Republic.

And millions more will continue to defend those values with this consciousness.

Let the ignorant beware:

The guardians of the Republic are not sleeping…

They are only watching with patience.

And do not forget:

The Republic is not just a form of government;

It is a stance. It is the will of the people.

And no dark mentality can hold its ground against this stance!

News Source: 12punto