Ali Rıza Değirmencioğlu (ARD) Turkish School, organized a ceremony on March 18th in commemoration of the Gallipoli Victory and Martyrs’ Day.
Attending the ceremony were Dr. Tahsin Bilginer, who closely supports the ARD Turkish School, Servet Hassan, the Chairman of the Gallipoli Commemoration Platform, Ayşe Osman, the former President of the Council of Turkish Associations in the UK, Ayşe Doğan, the former President of the UK Turkish Women’s Aid Association, as well as parents and students.
In her opening speech at the ceremony commemorating the 109th anniversary of the Gallipoli Naval Victory, ARD School Principal Sevtap Kemal honoured the Gallipoli Martyrs: “The Gallipoli Victory is a sacred triumph won under difficult conditions with thousands of martyrs sacrificed, a name given to the great struggle waged by the heroic sons of the Turkish nation, unlike any other in history. As the poet expressed, Gallipoli is a fiery shirt where the lions of Bedr roared, a place where martyrs fell like lambs entering a rose garden. May the souls of all our martyrs rest in peace!”
Drawing attention to the events in Palestine, the speaker of the event, Servet Hassan, the President of the Gallipoli Commemoration Platform (GCP), recounted the history of the Gallipoli Campaigns and the struggle for an independent homeland in Gallipoli.
During the ceremony, where students recited poems, emotional moments were experienced when the school choir sang the song “They Shot Me in Gallipoli”. As the first Turkish school established in the United Kingdom, ARD Turkish School is preparing to celebrate its 40th anniversary with a ball on April 26th.
