Diyanet ignores Atatürk in Çanakkale Victory commemoration!
The Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) once again failed to mention Atatürk in the sermon and calendar prepared for the March 18 Çanakkale Naval Victory. While the Diyanet sermon included Yahya Çavuş, not a single word was mentioned about Atatürk, the architect of the victory. The fact that Atatürk's name has not been mentioned in any sermon since Ali Erbaş took office as president continues to draw criticism.
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The role of the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, in the Çanakkale Victory has once again been ignored. In the sermon delivered by the Presidency of Religious Affairs ahead of the March 18 Çanakkale Naval Victory and Martyrs' Remembrance Day, Atatürk's name was not mentioned in any way.
According to a report by Sözcü, while the sermon emphasized that the Çanakkale Victory was a great struggle fought with love for the homeland and the nation, not a single expression regarding Atatürk's leadership was included. Instead, the name of one of the heroes of Çanakkale, Yahya Çavuş, was highlighted. The sermon stated, "Many heroes like Yahya Çavuş stood tall and fought against the enemy."
A similar situation occurred in the Diyanet calendar. While the victory was described under the heading "Glorious Resistance Çanakkale" in the calendar, Atatürk's name was ignored once again.
Throughout the tenure of the President of Religious Affairs Ali Erbaş, Atatürk's name has not appeared in any sermon. On the other hand, while it is known that Erbaş has traveled 600 thousand kilometers during his presidency—enough to circle the globe 13 times—it is noteworthy that he has not made a single visit to Anıtkabir. In contrast, he has visited the grave of Bosnia and Herzegovina's leader Alija Izetbegović many times.
The last time Atatürk was mentioned in Diyanet sermons was in 2010, during the term of the then-president Ali Bardakoğlu. It is noteworthy that Atatürk's name has not been included in sermons since that day.