Turkey marks May 19 Youth Day

The day also marks the 90th anniversary of Turkey’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, escaping allied-occupied Istanbul and reaching the Anatolian heartland May 19, 1919, to start Turkey’s independence struggle.

The first ceremony took place at Ataturk’s mausoleum in the Turkish capital of Ankara at 9 a.m., with the state’s top officials, headed by President Abdullah Gul, paying their respects to the country’s founder.

Those attending the ceremony observed a minute of silence and sang the National Anthem, after which Gul laid a wreath in remembrance at the mausoleum.

In his message in the Anitkabir Special Register, Gul wrote that the republic was in secure hands and that Turkish youth was determined to strengthen it in every way.

A ceremony was also held at the Black Sea province of Samsun, the start of the "War of Independence" 90 years ago.

Several officials, including Turkish Parliament Speaker Koksal Toptan, attended the ceremony in Samsun.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan released a statement on Monday to mark the day, noting that the country trusted in its youth and saw them as proof that Turkey’s future would be bright.

“Only countries that trust their youth and educate them accordingly can exist. That’s why all our efforts are aimed at providing a suitable environment for them to develop themselves and the country,” he said.

Toptan said Monday the day marked Turkey’s rebirth under the leadership of Ataturk, noting that the day was the beginning of a process that led to the founding of the Republic.

“The youth are the guarantee of our future,” he said.

Youth want to leave:
A study commissioned by the Ankara Young Businessmen Association, or ANGIAD, showed that 73.3 percent of Turkish youth would like to live overseas. The survey, conducted among 1,829 individuals between the ages of 18 and 30, showed that 80.2 percent did not participate in sports.

Of those questioned, 52.8 percent were men, and 62.9 percent were high school graduates and 27.4 were university graduates. According to the survey, 29.1 percent were employed, 32.5 percent were students and 4.8 percent were both working and studying. 33.6 percent said they were unemployed.

While most want to go overseas for better financial security, 59.4 percent said if they came back to the world again, they would still want to be born in Turkey.

Among the men, 18.1 percent saw their parents as role models, while 9.8 percent saw Acun Ilicali, a game show host, and 9.2 percent saw Polat Alemdar, a mafia boss in a television show, as their role models.

Women saw businesswoman Guler Sabanci and Education Minister Nimet Cubukcu as role models after their parents. Some 51.5 percent of respondents said they did not read newspapers, while 31.7 percent of those who do usually prefer the sports pages, and 19.3 percent prefer the magazine section.

The study showed 32.6 percent drank alcohol and smoked. 83.5 percent of respondents said they faced physical violence, with 59.2 percent saying they were victims of domestic violence. 32.1 percent said they did not want to respond to questions about violence.

The study revealed that the biggest fear youth have is to be unemployed or lose their jobs (19.2 percent), followed by the break-up of the country (17.1 percent), the death of a relative (15.7 percent) and their parents separating (15.3 percent).

49.2 percent are against Turkey joining the European Union while 18.5 percent are for a closer relationship with the United States and 12.7 percent are for closer ties with the Islamic world.

The study also showed that 60.4 percent believed there would be no military coups in Turkey anymore while 67.4 percent said Turkey would not face an Islamic revolution.