Turkish president to youth: "Use pencils, computers, not guns"
16:09, 19/05/2016, ThursdayU: Update: 16:32, 19/05/2016, Thursday
Yeni Şafak
President urges youth to preserve their country's economic independence to live independently forever
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that a country is totally independent only if it stands on its own.
“We had a Turkey, that had a 23 billion dollar debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the end of 2002. Today, we are a country that can give debt to the IMF," he said on Thursday.
He was speaking at a reception held to mark May 19, Commemoration of Ataturk, Youth and Sports Day.
“What really matters is to have a place in the hearts of the nation. If you do not achieve this, you are destined to be lost in the dusty pages of history," he asserted.
Erdoğan has praised young people's efforts for their country's future. “You are those, who use their guns as their pencils. You are a youth who believe your pencils are superior to the gun. You are pushing buttons on computers, not pulling the triggers of guns. You are building a new future im the world," he said. “You are not like those who have joined the network of betrayal in Qandil Mountain after escaping the country," he added.