Alanya Mayor and President of the Alanya Promotion Foundation (ALTAV) Adem Murat Yücel organized a large-scale cocktail event titled “Friendship Wins” for foreign residents living in Alanya. In Alanya, where 17 thousand foreign residents from 78 countries live, hundreds of foreigners attended the friendship cocktail, primarily from Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, Poland, and Scandinavian countries. Messages of peace and friendship were sent to the entire world, especially to Russia.
ALANYA STOOD SHOULDER TO SHOULDER
In addition to foreigners, protocol members and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) also participated in the friendship cocktail, joining in the message of friendship. The cocktail, held at Filika Restaurant, was attended by District Governor Hasan Tanrıseven, Mayor Adem Murat Yücel, Gendarmerie Commander Major Serkan Akbaba, Police Chief Mehmet Ömür Saka, President of the Alanya Association of Tourism Professionals (ALTİD) and Member of the Board of Directors of the Turkish Hotel Association (TÜROFED) Burhan Sili, the Foreigners' Assembly, NGO representatives, members of foreign associations, resident foreigners, members of the press, and many other guests.
YÜCEL: “WE ARE A LARGE AND HAPPY FAMILY”
Making a speech at the cocktail, Mayor Yücel both evaluated the 2015 tourism season and pointed to the strength of our country. Alanya Mayor Yücel said, “Despite all these negative developments in our Alanya, we continue to live together in peace as a large and happy family, without regard to religion, language, or race, and we will continue to serve as an example to the world. Türkiye is a strong country, and we possess the will to solve all kinds of problems. In our Alanya, we are the guarantors of the safety and peace of you and our guests who will come here. Fatih Sultan Mehmet’s first decree in the conquest of Istanbul in 1453 was ‘Tolerance.’ We are continuing this heritage we received from our ancestors in the same way.”
THE PEACE FIRE WAS LIT, FRIENDSHIP LANTERNS DECORATED THE SKY
Hundreds of foreign residents attended the “Friendship Wins” cocktail, for which invitations were prepared in four languages—Turkish, Russian, German, and English—to invite foreigners. Following President Yücel’s speech, the guests, together with Yücel and District Governor Tanrıseven, lit a peace fire and released peace lanterns into the sky. The guests and foreign residents attending the friendship cocktail sent messages of friendship to the entire world by singing songs in Turkish, Russian, and English in unison. They emphasized the importance of world peace and friendship through their songs.