OTİAD PRESIDENT İLKER KARATAŞ: "On July 15th, a new path was opened for our democracy!"

 Osmanbey Textile Businessmen Association (OTİAD) Chairman İlker Karataş said, "We have never forgotten the night of July 15, 2016! On that Friday night, we took to the streets with great courage and faith and defended the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, which represents the free will of the nation, and our democracy. As Osmanbey tradesmen and OTİAD family, we commemorate our martyrs with respect."

 In his press statement on the 1st anniversary of the July 15 coup attempt, İlker Karataş, Chairman of the Board of Directors of OTİAD, said that July 15 is not only a day when a treacherous coup attempt was suppressed, but also a special night in history in many aspects. Karataş; "On that day, while Turkey failed a coup attempt 36 years later with the power of the people, it also largely eliminated the possibility of possible coups in the future and opened a new path for our democracy, which is often interrupted."

 İlker Karataş emphasized that Turkey has embarked on an important structural change with the choice of the "Presidential System" and said, "From now on, we must give personality to our democracy. Different views and ideas should be seen as a necessity for a better democracy, not as a reason for separation. It should be the common denominator of all of us to fight for a just and strong pluralist democracy without breaking our unity and solidarity."

  "We have never forgotten the night of July 15, 2016! On that night, our country faced a coup attempt by some generals and military personnel who were members of the Fetullahist Terrorist Organization (FETO) within the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK). On that Friday night, 248 people were martyred and 2196 people were injured among our citizens and security officers who took to the streets with great courage and faith and stood against the treacherous coup attempt against our government and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, which represents the free will of the nation. As Osmanbey tradesmen and OTİAD family, we commemorate our beloved martyrs once again with respect and gratitude, we wish mercy from Allah and we express our gratitude to our veterans."

 Underlining that the State of Emergency, which was declared in order to eliminate the FETÖ/PDY terrorist organization with all its elements and rapidly, is still in effect, Karataş continued his words as follows:

 "As business circles, we of course wish to see the end of the State of Emergency, but the struggle of the past year has shown that the job would not end with the suppression of the coup. The complete cleansing of this treacherous structure, which has insidiously penetrated every part of Turkey for many years, has necessitated a long and determined struggle that continues today.

 As a professional organization representing Osmanbey, one of the most important trade centers of Istanbul in textile and ready-to-wear clothing, we underline once again that we always stand by our state in this struggle; we respectfully announce to the public that we will always stand firm against non-democratic forces with the awareness that the deepening of our democracy and the strengthening of our economy is possible with a civilian government..."