Turgut Özal Facts for Kids

For other uses, see Turgut Özal (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids Turgut Özal
Özal in 1989

8th President of Turkey
In office 9 November 1989 – 17 April 1993
Prime Minister	Yıldırım Akbulut Mesut Yılmaz Süleyman Demirel
Preceded by	Kenan Evren
Succeeded by	Süleyman Demirel
19th Prime Minister of Turkey
In office 13 December 1983 – 9 November 1989
President	Kenan Evren
Deputy	Kaya Erdem Ali Bozer
Preceded by	Bülend Ulusu
Succeeded by	Yıldırım Akbulut
Leader of the Motherland Party
In office 20 May 1983 – 9 November 1989 Serving with Zeyyat Baykara
Preceded by	Party established
Succeeded by	Yıldırım Akbulut
Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey
In office 20 September 1980 – 14 July 1982
Prime Minister	Bülend Ulusu
Preceded by	Turhan Feyzioğlu
Succeeded by	Kaya Erdem
Member of the Grand National Assembly
In office 6 November 1983 – 9 November 1989
Constituency	Istanbul (1983, 1987)

Personal details
Born	(1927-10-13)13 October 1927 Malatya, Turkey
Died	17 April 1993(1993-04-17) (aged 65) Ankara, Turkey
Cause of death	Heart attack
Political party	ANAP
Spouses	Ayhan İnal (m. 1952; div. 1952) Semra Yeğinmen (m. 1954)
Children	3, including Ahmet
Relatives	Özal family
Alma mater	Istanbul Technical University
Signature

Turgut Özal (Turkish pronunciation: [tuɾˈɡut øˈzɑɫ]; 13 October 1927 – 17 April 1993) was an important Turkish leader. He was an engineer and a statesman. Özal served as the 8th President of Turkey from 1989 to 1993. Before that, he was the 26th Prime Minister of Turkey from 1983 to 1989. He led the Motherland Party. He also worked as the Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey from 1980 to 1982.

Özal worked at the World Bank and was a university teacher. He became a leader in a miners' trade union in 1979. He helped create new economic plans for Turkey. These plans aimed to make the Turkish economy more open. After a military takeover in 1980, he continued to work on these economic changes. He left his role in 1982 due to disagreements.

In 1983, Özal started the Motherland Party. His party won the election that year. He then became Prime Minister. He made many changes to the economy. He also worked to improve Turkey's relationships with other countries. He died in 1993 while still serving as President.

Early Life and Education
Political Journey
- Becoming Prime Minister (1983–1989)
- Presidential Years (1989–1993)
Passing Away
Legacy
Family Life
Images for kids
See Also

Early Life and Education

Turgut Özal was born in Malatya, Turkey. His mother had Kurdish family roots. He went to elementary school in Silifke. He completed middle school in Mardin and high school in Kayseri.

Özal studied electrical engineering. He graduated from Istanbul Technical University in 1950. From 1950 to 1952, he worked for the State Electrical Power Planning Administration. He also studied in the United States for a year. He focused on electrical energy and engineering management.

After returning to Turkey, he worked on electrification projects. In 1959, he joined the State Planning Organization. After his military service, he held important roles in state organizations. He also taught at Middle East Technical University. He worked for the World Bank from 1971 to 1973. Later, he led some private Turkish companies. In 1979, he became an advisor to Prime Minister Süleyman Demirel.

Political Journey

In 1980, a military government took control. They appointed Özal as a state minister. He was in charge of economic matters until July 1982.

Becoming Prime Minister (1983–1989)

Prime Minister Turgut Özal, 1986.

In 1977, Özal ran for Parliament. He was a candidate for the National Salvation Party. However, he did not win that election.

On May 20, 1983, he founded the Motherland Party. He became its leader. His party won the general election in 1983. On December 13, 1983, he became the 19th Prime Minister of Turkey. He won the elections again in 1987. This allowed him to continue as Prime Minister.

During his time as Prime Minister, Turkey saw big changes. He worked to open up the economy. This included changes to how money was exchanged. He also focused on increasing exports.

Presidential Years (1989–1993)

Turgut Özal and Felipe González at Moncloa Palace, September 1989.

Turgut Özal and George Bush in Istanbul, July 1991.

On November 9, 1989, Özal was elected the 8th President of Turkey. He was the first president born after the Republic of Turkey was founded.

As President, Özal worked to build ties with Turkic countries. These included nations in Central Asia and Azerbaijan. He also wanted closer relations with countries in the Middle East. During the Gulf War, he supported the President of the United States George H. W. Bush.

Özal believed in a strong, modern Turkey. He saw Turkey as a bridge between Asia and Europe. He thought that Islam could work well with democracy. He believed a Muslim country could be modern and progressive.

He also started talks with the Kurdistan Workers' Party. A ceasefire was declared in March 1993. This hope for peace ended after his death.

Passing Away

Turgut Özal died on April 17, 1993. He was still serving as President. His death was unexpected. Some people suspected he might have been poisoned. His wife, Semra Özal, said he might have been poisoned by lemonade. She also noted that no autopsy was done at the time.

Hundreds of thousands of people attended his state funeral. Dignitaries from many countries came. He was buried in Istanbul.

Years later, in 2012, his body was exhumed. This was done to check for poisoning. Tests found a banned insecticide in his body. However, the exact cause of death remained unclear. A trial was held, but no one was found guilty of his death.