The Press
ATATÜRK DECLARES!
The Press
The Press is the common voice of a nation. In the illumination and
enlightenment of a nation, in furnishing a nation with the intellectual
nourishment it needs, in short, ensuring that the nation, the sole target of
which is to achieve happiness, walks on a joint path, the press constitutes a
force, a school, a guide for such nation. (1922)
I would like to mention the highly appreciated responsibilities of the press
in daily life, political life and in the development and progress of the
Republic.
There is no need to mention how delicate a situation it is to make absolute
use of the freedom of press. Beyond all kinds of legal reservations, a man of
letters should have the solemn obligation to regard and respect science,
requirements of the day and his own political considerations as well as the
rights of the citizens and the esteemed interests of the country, which are
beyond all private considerations. And it is this obligation that may ensure
public order. Even if there should be failures and faults on this path, the
effective instruments to remedy these faults will not be as in the older days,
certain institutions that take the press under control. Quite the contrary, the
means of removing troubles, born out of the freedom of press, shall be the
freedom of press itself. (1924)
But if those fundamental principles, established within the guiding and
mature understanding of the Grand Assembly, suggesting that troubles stemming
from the freedom of press may only be resolved by way of freedom of press enable
those who are far from virtue, which is the spirit of the Republic, to act as
plunderer within the press; if the ill-omened affects of the ideas of those
deceptive and seductive individuals gives rise to the death of innocent
citizens, working on their farms or to the loss of their homes and finally if
these deceptive individuals make recourse to the waste type of brigandage and
find the opportunity to make use of special favors of laws, then it will be
without doubt, inevitable that the Grand National Assembly stretches out its
taming and punishing arms in order to interfere and warn.
A press, bearing the mentality and moral values of the republic as a part of
the world, may only be created by the Republic itself. While the vision of
ruthless newspapers and their connections of the past appears in the minds of
the nation, the neat and productive press of the Republic is flourishing. Only a
press of such a mentality is able to facilitate and promote the work and the
civil life of our noble nation. (1925)
A human society has general common feelings and ideas. The value, degree of
civilization, desire and attitude of human societies can only be demonstrated
according to the extent these general common feelings and ideas are revealed.
For those who are charged with the administration of a human society or
individuals, friendly or hostile, who are in the state of ruling over the fate
of human societies, public opinion reflects the talents and value of those
societies. Thus, nations are obliged to reflect their public opinion to the
world. Besides, the public opinion of the whole world needs to be known. To know
the public opinion of the whole world is without doubt necessary to arrange
requirements of life. In this respect on the other hand, the press constitutes
the primary and most important instrument.
The fact that the government shall put top priority on the press, the
importance and supremacy of which is well known within the civilizations of the
world and that the press is obliged to fulfill its duty in favor of the nation
are among the matters the high Assembly definitely demands (1 March 1922)
Publications have the effect of preventing misuses or obliging the government
to fulfill its duty properly.
People who are not of a noble mind foster struggles within the press for
which they pay. It has been observed that the most vulgar lies have been
disseminated by way of the press. There are also other dangers the press and
freedom of mind are exposed to. There is the fear that the press and even
intellectual societies separate from the attitude of the national government or
become the instruments of secret political or economical mal-intentions.
The fact that the press is purchasable by international finance, that the
latter has a secret impact on the press or that there is the affect of secret
funds financed by foreign states; all these facts contribute to the fear that
public opinion may be deceived and misleaded. But all these bad ideas stemming
from freedom itself are in no way without remedy.
Journalism, which is no more than lucrative work at first, may turn into a
social institution with time. Moreover, the intellectual and political education
of the people may also be regarded as a guarantee. People get used to reading
and comparing several newspapers.
Above all, it must be accepted that there must be good will and that people
with good will, engaged in vital matters will always constitute the majority
because it is possible to deceive half of the world at any time or the whole
world at another time. But to deceive the whole world all the time is never
possible.
Gentlemen, a society has its own common general feelings and ideas. The
value, grade of civilization, demands and inclinations of societies can only be
made apparent according to the extent they form their general feelings and ideas
and express them. For people, who are charged with the administration of a human
society or those friendly or hostile individuals, who are in the state of ruling
over the fate of human societies, public opinion reflects the talents and value
of those societies. Besides, public opinion of the whole world needs to be
known. To know the public opinion of the whole world is without doubt necessary
to arrange requirements of daily life. In this respect on the other hand, the
press constitutes the primary and most important means.
The Press shall in no way be under pressure.
The Turkish press will constitute a iron fortress around the Republic, with
the real voice and demands of the people. That will be a fortress of ideas, a
fortress of understanding. It is the right of the Republic to expect this from
the press. Today it is compulsory that the nation is wholeheartedly united in
solidarity. The welfare and happiness of the public depends on this fact. The
press is charged with a great deal of important work in the transmission of this
fact to the ears, to the conscience of the nation. (February 1924, S.D.II)