In the early Turkish Republic (1920s–1930s), leaders and social reformers devoted considerable attention to children, whom they regarded as key assets of the broader society and state. Leaders considered strong, healthy children as a sign of a strong state. The institutionalization of a national children's holiday, linked to the celebration of national sovereignty, and President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's signing of the Geneva Convention on the Rights of the Child signaled this state preoccupation with children. Key social problems to be tackled i…