Turkey's first coin without Atatürk now in use

ISTANBUL

The coin's obverse reads 'Türkçe Olimpiyatları' (Turkish Olympics) instead of displaying a visage of Atatürk. Milliyet photo

The Turkish mint has distributed the Republic’s first coins not to feature Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’s visage on either of its sides, daily Cumhuriyet reported.
 
The coins, a million of which are now in use, were made as souvenirs to mark the 10th anniversary of the Turkish Olympics, an event in which children from around the world come to Turkey to display their prowess in Turkish.
 
The use of coins has stirred a public debate as some citizens disliked the new arrangement, saying it was part of planned state propaganda to discredit modern Turkey's founder.

Numerous souvenier coins that did not feature Atatürk's visage were previously minted in Turkey, but none were put into circulation as is the case with the recently minted coins.
 
"It's unacceptable that these coins, supposedly made as souvenirs, are being used," one person told Cumhuriyet