Republic Day celebrations muted across Turkey over mine accident

A coal mine collapse in the Central Anatolian province of Karaman has cast a shadow on the Oct. 29 Republic Day celebrations in the Turkish capital Ankara, as everyone desperately hopes for good news from the coal mine where 18 miners remain trapped.

“We are very sad because of the painful mine disaster in Karaman. We have not yet given up hope,”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, delivering a speech at the Hippodrome where he saluted and watched the traditional annual military parade.

“We wish to be reunited with our 18 brothers. We will continue our struggle to the last second,” added Erdoğan, who was scheduled to travel to the southern Anatolian town of Ermenek in the Karaman province, where the mine is located close to Mediterranean coast.

In his speech for Republic Day, Erdoğan underlined the “spirit of solidarity and fraternity.”

“The Republic of Turkey is the joint work of our nation; likewise, the Republic of Turkey is the republic of all 77 million people without exception. Each and every individual of the 77 million is the republic’s own child without any exception, and owns this republic equally,” he said, in the first speech he has delivered on the anniversary of the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in his capacity as head of the state after being elected president in August.

“With endless thanks to our God, today, the republic has gained a structure that keeps an equal distance from all ethic roots, faiths, languages and cultures. That is to say, it has rejoined its essence and spirit,” said Erdoğan, who served as the prime minister of the current ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) from 2003 until his election as president.

“We will continue building the...