By Roy Lie Atjam
On October 31, 2025, H.E. Ms. Fatma Ceren Yazgan, the Ambassador of the Republic of Türkiye, hosted a reception to celebrate the 102nd anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye.
This festive occasion attracted a diverse group of attendees, including various ambassadors, diplomats, and representatives from the Dutch-Turkish business community.
During the event, Ambassador Fatma Ceren Yazgan confidently delivered her inaugural National Day speech. In her welcoming remarks, she included quotes and unequivocally expressed her gratitude to all sections of the embassy, including the Consulates General in Amsterdam, Deventer, and Rotterdam, as well as the Military Attaché and Counsellors of Interior Affairs, among others. Excerpts from Ambassador Fatma Ceren Yazgan’s maiden speech are an essential component of this National Day review.
“Before I go into the speech, screening of a video demonstrated what the Turkish Republic is from the voice of its founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk himself.
You have just heard the address of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk on the 10th anniversary of the Republic. He led us to independence, and decided not to be the ruler himself, but he strived to have a Republic. The same message is echoed in the message of our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan that is presented herewith, -in the room: “Sovereignty unconditionally belongs to the nation”.Both leaders, in two messages from the 10th and the 102 nd anniversary underline, that sovereignty, which comes from the nation, is based on a centuries-old continuum of state tradition of the Turkish people, who in face of most difficult times found a way to survive, and the courage and strength in national unity.
In this proud moment we also find a kindred spirit in the history of the Dutch people, who centuries ago fought their own struggle for independence leading the founding of the Dutch Republic of 1581.
While some German newspapers continue to claim that Germans were the first to recognize the Dutch Republic, I have to say, that the Ottomans were the first to recognize the Dutch Republic, not least because they wanted to trade. Our relations with the Netherlands began in 1612, growing through diplomacy and trade.
The Netherlands is the largest investor in Türkiye and our trade volume has reached 13 billion euros. However, our most valuable joint investment has been in human resources; a vibrant Dutch Turkish community who are today represented. They have been evolving since 1964, from blue-collar guest workers to builders, vendors, financiers, industrialists, DJs, police officers, military personnel, scientists and tech wizards of generations.
Amsterdam and Eindhoven are now filled with tech and finance savvy new expats. The old migrants -the Dutch Turks- they speak Dutch, the new expats don’t speak Dutch, and that is my difficulty as the Ambassador. I am trying to make them speak Turkish to each other, Dutch with the Netherlands, and English with the world. If we can do this with the millennials and Gen Z, on their Instagram and TikTok, then we shall have the task accomplished in the spirit of this century.
I would like to say that we have a lot of good stories to tell and many more to come.
In Queen Beatrix’s wise words I would like to reiterate here,“openness and tolerance form a major basis of trust.” Throughout the ages, our society drew strength from the presence of people with different cultural or ideological backgrounds.”
Preceding Magna Carta, in 622 the Prophet Mohammed drafted a text in the city of Madina, to make the Jews, the Christians, and the Muslims, who were the new ummah, to live in peace and he regulated the code of conduct for conflict resolution and the trade.
The Ottoman Ambassador, who died here in 1914 and is buried in The Hague, was a Greek Ottoman, Aristarki Bey. I am now the 40 th Ambassador in this line, which is representing that continuum and I am very proud to be the second woman ambassador, after Ambassador Filiz Dinçmen, who was the first Turkish female Ambassador. We always need wise women. Queen Beatrix, a wise woman once said “It is important to identify what binds us. We cannot deny our differences but must see them as a starting point for social dialogue. That is the basis for mutual respect”. Yet, there are some differences which may not be overcome.
I can-assure our Dutch friends that they may have to accept the fact that the Turks will continue to fight for paying the bill at restaurants and cafés. So, “tikkie” is not for the Turks (a quick and easy bank payment). We are now doing much better in NATO, we appreciate our alliance, look forward to developing our complementary defense capacities and abilities. Yet, in a world of uncertainties, frankly speaking, mind blowing technological change, populism and ideological extremes, the best defense we all can build will be with common sense, consistency and coherence.
Residing in The Hague, as it also happens to be the capital of international law, is a priceless opportunity and experience for all diplomats. Likewise, being accredited to the OPCW at the same time gives us a unique opportunity to make an impact defending a rules-based international order that we thought to have existed following two world wars.
And yet our children today are very aware that this order could not protect the innocent lives. They are worried about the future. They had read Anne Frank’s diary and were promised never again the humanity would allow such horrors. But they watched Hind Rajab’s murder, they hear her last words. They read and watched that this world order that their fathers and mothers are defending couldn’t protect the Palestinian children, the Ukrainian children, and most recently the Sudanese children. A lot of children, we have disappointed.
Our nations risk losing faith in the strength of democracies; that democracies can defend them against a failing international order. Peace is worth much more than any domestic political victory or profits at stock exchange. We must prevent and stop bloodshed wherever it occurs and deter all forms of expansionism and extremism.
Today, I am proud to be part of the diplomatic corps in The Hague where most distinguished diplomats from all over the world have the chance to work with one of the best diplomatic traditions in the world. To our colleagues from MINBUZA: I am fully assured that we shall collectively and in cooperation with each other, make diplomacy great again.”
