The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, on the eve of December 21st, the Day of Education in Turkish language, today met representatives of the Coalition of Turkish NGO's - MATUSITEB.

The meeting was attended by Mr. Tahsin Ibrahim, Chairman of MATUSITEB, and members of the board of the organization, Mr. Shenol Tahir, Mr. Hushref Emin and Mr. Hayati Saban, and views were exchanged on the situation of the Turkish community in the Republic of Macedonia.

President Ivanov stressed that the Republic of Macedonia highly appreciates the contribution that the members of this community provide for the overall development of the country and expressed hope that they will continue to cherish the Turkish tradition and contribute to a prosperous future for all citizens of the Republic of Macedonia, as well as for deepening of the friendly relations between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Turkey.

The interlocutors informed President Ivanov on MATUSITEB current activities, as well as the developments and challenges in the process of education and teaching in Turkish. The meeting also praised the importance that the Republic of Macedonia assigns to the right to education in mother tongue, as well as the continued efforts by the President for equal status of the members of all ethnic communities in the country and to protection of their culture and tradition.

On the occasion of the Day of Education in Turkish Language, December 21st, President Ivanov sent congratulation message to the members of the Turkish community in the Republic of Macedonia.

Respected fellow citizens,

Let me congratulate the Day of the Education in Turkish Language to all members of the Turkish community in the Republic of Macedonia.

The language is the soul of a nation. It expresses national and cultural features, identity and spiritual heritage of the country. Diversity, mix of cultures and religions makes us special, and our mutual respect and trust give us the right to say that we have created a solid bridge for mutual cooperation and partnership. Indicative of this is the good cooperation between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Turkey, as witnessed by the numerous jointly implemented projects. Our trump is the tradition that connects and binds us at the same time to promote jointly the interests and cultural values as part of our common future.

The possibility that the Turks have, as well as the other communities in the Republic of Macedonia, to be educated and to speak their mother language, speaks enough for the universal values that we stand for and the democratic specificity we have been creating for centuries.

Congratulating you the Day of Education in Turkish Language, I would like to emphasize that in the future, as before, we will strive to enhance the social processes of nurturing and promoting cultural characteristics and traditions of the Turkish community in Macedonia.

Dr. Gjorge Ivanov