Tansu Çiller
22nd Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey from 1993 to 1996 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Tansu Çiller (Turkish: [ˈtansu tʃiˈlːæɾ]; born 24 May 1946) is a Turkish academic, economist, and politician who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Turkey from 1993 to 1996. She was Turkey's first and only female prime minister. As the leader of the True Path Party, she went on to concurrently serve as Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey and as Minister of Foreign Affairs between 1996 and 1997.
Tansu Çiller | |
---|---|
22nd Prime Minister of Turkey | |
In office 25 June 1993 – 6 March 1996 | |
President | Süleyman Demirel |
Deputy | Murat Karayalçın Hikmet Çetin Deniz Baykal |
Preceded by | Süleyman Demirel |
Succeeded by | Mesut Yılmaz |
Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey | |
In office 28 June 1996 – 30 June 1997 | |
Prime Minister | Necmettin Erbakan |
Preceded by | Nahit Menteşe |
Succeeded by | İsmet Sezgin |
Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
In office 28 June 1996 – 30 June 1997 | |
Prime Minister | Necmettin Erbakan |
Preceded by | Emre Gönensay |
Succeeded by | İsmail Cem |
Minister of State (Responsible for Economy) | |
In office 21 November 1991 – 25 June 1993 | |
Prime Minister | Süleyman Demirel |
Leader of the True Path Party | |
In office 13 June 1993 – 14 December 2002 | |
Preceded by | Süleyman Demirel |
Succeeded by | Mehmet Ağar |
Member of the Grand National Assembly | |
In office 20 October 1991 – 3 November 2002 | |
Constituency | Istanbul (1991, 1995, 1999) |
Personal details | |
Born | Tansu Penbe Çiller (1946-05-24) 24 May 1946 (age 77) Istanbul, Turkey |
Political party | True Path Party |
Spouse(s) |
Özer Uçuran (m. 1963) |
Children | 2 |
Alma mater | Boğaziçi University University of New Hampshire University of Connecticut Yale University |
Signature | |
As a Professor of Economics, Çiller was appointed Minister of State for the economy by Prime Minister Süleyman Demirel in 1991. When Demirel was elected as President in 1993, Çiller succeeded him as leader of the True Path Party and Prime Minister. Her premiership presided over the intensifying armed conflict between the Turkish Armed Forces and the PKK, resulting in Çiller's enacting numerous reforms to national defense. Her government was able to persuade the United States and the European Union to register the PKK as a terrorist organization. However, she was responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated against the Kurdish people by the Turkish military, security forces, and paramilitary.[1][2]
Shortly after winning the 1994 local elections, large-scale capital flight due to the lack of confidence in Çiller's budget deficit targets led to the Turkish lira and foreign currency reserves' almost collapsing. Amid the subsequent economic crisis and austerity measures, her government signed the EU-Turkey Customs Union in 1995. Her government was alleged to have supported the 1995 Azeri coup d'état attempt and presided over an escalation of tensions with Greece after claiming sovereignty over the Imia/Kardak islets.
Although the DYP came third in the 1995 general election, she remained Prime Minister until she formed a coalition government with Necmettin Erbakan in 1996. That year's Susurluk car crash and subsequent scandal revealed the relations between extra-legal organisations and Çiller's government. Revelations that she had employed individuals connected with the Turkish mafia and the Grey Wolves such as Abdullah Çatlı led to a decline in her approval ratings. Erbakan's and Çiller's coalition government fell due to a coup d'état by military memorandum, following which the DYP declined further in the 1999 general election. Despite coming third in the 2002 general election, Çiller's DYP won less than 10% of the vote and thus lost all parliamentary representation, which led to her resignation as party leader and departure from active politics.