The events yesterday commemorated Ertuğrul Gazi, the father of Ottoman Empire founder Osman Bey, and began with a ceremony in Söğüt in the Marmara province of Bilecik, where the Ottoman Empire was first established as a dynasty in 1299.
President Gül, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli and other political party leaders and officials, as well as state ministers, participated in the ceremony.

Gül gave an address at the event, emphasizing that today's conquests are achievements in science, art, law and democracy and noting the importance attached to human rights.

Recalling that the Ottoman dynasty was one of the smallest dynasties of Anatolia, which neighbored Anatolian dynasties in Rumelia, Gül said, "The Ottoman dynasty did not point its gun at its people unless required and directed its Turkmen energy, which came from Central Asia, at the Byzantine Empire, unlike other dynasties [which were fighting with each other]."

Gül also stated that today's Turkey has the same energy and dynamism and that directing this energy to the outside world, instead of directing it at each other, will pave Turkey's way forward. "If we waste our energy fighting with each other, we will sacrifice our interests. That is why we need to expend our energy just as our ancestors did 700 to 800 years ago," he said.

The president further noted that it is normal that there are disagreements and debates within Turkey, saying that this is part of being an open society.

He further stated that the Ottoman Empire ruled vast and problematic regions such as the Balkans and the Middle East, yet it was able to provide justice and safety for those who had already been living there. "The Ottoman Empire had no reservations in interacting with different cultures such as Anatolian, Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Roman. Turks put tolerance at the center of their administrative philosophies," he said, adding that such multi-nation empires collapsed after states began to be established and that the Turkish Republic was founded by the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.

The president also stressed that differences within the country, such as different ethnic groups and ideologies, are its wealth and that Turkey needs to concentrate its energy on modernizing and improving the welfare of society. "I have never become pessimistic about the future of Turkey. I strongly believe that the future of Turkey will be very bright," he added.

Bahçeli and Baykal also gave speeches during the ceremony. Bahçeli emphasized that Turkey is at the center of a very big empire in Anatolia that became Turkish after centuries of struggle. He further said after Anatolia was Turkified, the Europeans became hostile toward Turks and Islam, adding that after the rule of the Ottomans ended on three continents -- Asia, Europe and Africa -- bloodshed, tears and violence became a constant in these areas.

Baykal, on the other hand, stressed that people wrongly assume that the Ottoman rule over a vast territory was attributable only to the power of its army. "The Ottoman Empire was a social organization, and it displayed a major system of culture, moral values, tolerance and ethics."

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