Prof. Dr. Fevzi Çakmak: “There are those who are disturbed by the tranquility achieved in this geography for the past 100 years.”

In the conference held as part of the traditional “Republic and Atatürk Days” events organized at Ege University, Prof. Dr. Fevzi Çakmak, a faculty member at Dokuz Eylül University Atatürk Principles and Revolution History Institute, stated, “The Republic brought a system where the grandfather could see his grandson. This geography has experienced peace for 100 years, but there are those who are disturbed by this peace and want to disrupt it. This does not end, it will not end. We say, ‘History is but a repetition,’ and unfortunately, we always face the bitter side of that repetition.”

Ege University Faculty of Education organized a conference on the topic of “Atatürk – Republic – Science.” The conference, in which Prof. Dr. Fevzi Çakmak from Dokuz Eylül University Atatürk Principles and Revolution History Institute participated as a speaker, was attended by the Dean of the Faculty of Education, Prof. Dr. Osman Ferda Beytekin, as well as academics and students.

Prof. Dr. Fevzi Çakmak began his speech by commemorating the citizens who were martyred in the terrorist attack that took place at TUSAŞ. He said, “The Republic brought a system where the grandfather could see his grandson. This geography did not live in peace. There was no peace for centuries. Although this geography has experienced peace for 100 years, there are those who are disturbed by this peace and want to disrupt it. This does not end, it will not end. We say, ‘History is but a repetition,’ and unfortunately, we always face the bitter side of that repetition.”

Prof. Dr. Çakmak expressed the value Mustafa Kemal Atatürk placed on teachers, stating, “As we can understand from the fact that he organized the Maarif Congress in an atmosphere where the war was not yet over and the Greek army had won the Kütahya-Eskişehir Battle, Atatürk valued teachers greatly. He convened the Maarif Congress in such an atmosphere and made plans for the new state they would establish together. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk established this will with the power he derived from the past. He read a lot of history and foresaw how society might react.”

“Men and women should be equal in every aspect of life”
Prof. Dr. Çakmak emphasized the importance of equality in education, stating, “Equality in education and the co-education system are important concepts. You cannot lead a nation you wish to bring to the level of contemporary civilizations while it is limping. Men and women will go equally in every aspect of life. For example, Atatürk took his wife, Latife Hanım, with him wherever he went. He said, ‘A woman’s place is beside her husband.’ Then everyone who saw Atatürk began to take their wives along and started taking photos together.”

Addressing the teacher candidates, Prof. Dr. Çakmak said, “Mustafa Kemal Atatürk wrote in his Nutuk in 1927 what they did and which battles they won when he landed in Samsun on May 19, 1919, and concluded with the ‘Address to the Youth’ that begins with ‘O Turkish Youth!’ Your duty is to learn what solutions were proposed to overcome the difficulties experienced at that time and to think, ‘If those who achieved this in such poverty could succeed, why can’t we succeed in this abundance?’ Because you will also have children, and it will be your duty to tell them about this.”

At the end of the conference, a “Thank You Plaque” was presented to Prof. Dr. Fevzi Çakmak by Prof. Dr. Osman Ferda Beytekin, Dean of the Faculty of Education at Ege University.