Korkut Özal Explained

Korkut Özal
Native Name:instead.-->
Office:Minister of the Interior
Term Start:21 July 1977
Term End:5 January 1978
Predecessor:Necdet Uğur
Successor:İrfan Özaydınlı
Office2:Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock
Term Start3:26 January 1974
Term End3:16 November 1974
Predecessor3:Ahmet Nusret Tuna
Successor3:Fikret Gündoğan
Term Start2:1 April 1975
Term End2:21 June 1977
Predecessor2:Reşat Aktan
Successor2:Fikret Gündoğan
Term Start4:24 December 1995
Term End4:18 April 1999
Constituency4:Istanbul (1995)
Term Start5:14 October 1973
Term End5:12 September 1980
Constituency5:Erzurum(1973, 1977)
Birth Date:29 May 1929
Birth Place:Malatya, Turkey
Death Place:Istanbul, Turkey
Children:5
Relatives:Özal family

Korkut Özal (29 May 1929 – 2 November 2016) was a Turkish engineer and politician.[1] [2] He was the brother of Turkish President Turgut Özal and . His cause of death in 2016 was respiratory and circulatory failure.[3]

Academic career

Korkut Özal studied at the Faculty of Civil Engineering at Istanbul Technical University. He then completed his postgraduate studies in the United States between 1956 and 1957. He became a teacher at the Middle East Technical University after returning to Turkey.[4] In 1965, he was awarded a professorship and became a lecturer at the State Academy of Architecture and Engineering.

Early political career

Özal entered politics through the National Salvation Party; he was elected as the party's deputy for Erzurum in the 1973 and 1977 elections. In 1974, he was the minister of food, agriculture, and livestock in the CHP-MSP coalition government, and later in the first Nationalist Front cabinet established in 1975.[4] He served as the interior minister in the second Nationalist Front cabinet in 1977 for six months.[5] Shortly after the 1980 Turkish coup d'état Korkut Özal suffered a traffic accident on 25 September 1980, and withdrew from politics.[6]

Later political life

His brother, Turgut Özal, served as president until his death in 1993, after which Korkut Özal re-entered politics through the Motherland Party and was elected as an Istanbul deputy in 1995. He chaired the Turkish Parliament’s Home Affairs Commission and the Turkish Parliamentary Group of the OSCE.[6] [7] He was critical of many of the policies of the Anasol-D government and resigned from the Motherland Party on 13 August 1997.[6] He joined the newly established Democratic Party and was elected president of the party at the congress on 28 September 1997. On 22 March 2001, he left the chairmanship of the Democratic Party.[8]

Influence

Özal was active in the İlim Yayma Foundation and was mentor of many significant conservative politicians, including Kadir Topbaş, Ahmet Davutoğlu, Ali Coşkun, Mehmet Aydın and Nevzat Yalçıntaş.[9] In addition, he was close to the leading members of the Justice and Development Party.[9]

Death

Korkut Özal died on 2 November 2016, at his home in Istanbul. He was buried in the family plot in the Topkapi cemetery.[6]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Piri Medya. Yenisafak.com. Korkut Özal kimdir, nerelidir? Korkut Özal bu sabah vefat etti! . 2017-05-04.
  2. Web site: Lightmillennium.org. Korkut Ozal'In Biyografisi. 2017-05-04.
  3. Web site: Turgut Özal'ın kardeşi Korkut Özal hayatını kaybetti . NTV . 2016-11-02 . 2017-05-04.
  4. Book: Onur İnal. Ethemcan Turhan. Transforming Socio-Natures in Turkey: Landscapes, State and Environmental Movements. 2019-07-09. Taylor & Francis. 978-0-429-77071-5. 53.
  5. Book: Yusuf Sarfati. Mobilizing Religion in Middle East Politics: A Comparative Study of Israel and Turkey. 2013. Routledge. 978-1-135-09870-4. 160.
  6. News: Turgut Özal'ın kardeşi Korkut Özal hayatını kaybetti. 22 February 2020. Anadolu Agency. NTV. 2 November 2016.
  7. News: Former minister, late president Turgut Özal's brother Korkut Özal passes away at the age of 87. DailySabah. 2018-03-10.
  8. News: Former Turkish government minister Korkut Özal passes away. Hürriyet. 22 February 2020.
  9. Birol A. Yeşilada. The AKP, religion, and political values in contemporary Turkey: implications for the future of democracy. Turkish Studies. 24. 3-4. 2023. 10.1080/14683849.2023.2186784. 613. free.