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 Yusuf Bozkurt Özal [tr]. His cause of death in 2016 was respiratory and circulatory failure.[3]

Korkut Özal
Minister of the Interior
In office
21 July 1977 – 5 January 1978
Preceded byNecdet Uğur
Succeeded byİrfan Özaydınlı
Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock
In office
1 April 1975 – 21 June 1977
Preceded byReşat Aktan
Succeeded byFikret Gündoğan
In office
26 January 1974 – 16 November 1974
Preceded byAhmet Nusret Tuna
Succeeded byFikret Gündoğan
Member of the Grand National Assembly
In office
24 December 1995 – 18 April 1999
ConstituencyIstanbul (1995)
In office
14 October 1973 – 12 September 1980
ConstituencyErzurum (1973, 1977)
Personal details
Born(1929-05-29)29 May 1929
Malatya, Turkey
Died2 November 2016(2016-11-02) (aged 87)
Istanbul, Turkey
Children5
RelativesÖzal family

Academic career

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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

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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

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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

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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

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

References

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  1. ^ Piri Medya. "Korkut Özal kimdir, nerelidir? Korkut Özal bu sabah vefat etti!". Yenisafak.com. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  2. ^ "Korkut Ozal'In Biyografisi". Lightmillennium.org. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  3. ^ "Turgut Özal'ın kardeşi Korkut Özal hayatını kaybetti". NTV. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  4. ^ a b Onur İnal; Ethemcan Turhan (9 July 2019). Transforming Socio-Natures in Turkey: Landscapes, State and Environmental Movements. Taylor & Francis. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-429-77071-5.
  5. ^ Yusuf Sarfati (2013). Mobilizing Religion in Middle East Politics: A Comparative Study of Israel and Turkey. Routledge. p. 160. ISBN 978-1-135-09870-4.
  6. ^ a b c d CYurd0lro0mm3Z59qfSq0g "Turgut Özal'ın kardeşi Korkut Özal hayatını kaybetti". NTV. Anadolu Agency. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2020. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
  7. ^ "Former minister, late president Turgut Özal's brother Korkut Özal passes away at the age of 87". DailySabah. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  8. ^ "Former Turkish government minister Korkut Özal passes away". Hürriyet. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  9. ^ a b Birol A. Yeşilada (2023). "The AKP, religion, and political values in contemporary Turkey: implications for the future of democracy". Turkish Studies. 24 (3–4): 613. doi:10.1080/14683849.2023.2186784.
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Preceded by Minister of Internal Affairs of Turkey
21 July 1977 - 5 January 1978
Succeeded by
Preceded by Turkey Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock
1 April 1975 - 21 June 1977
Succeeded by
Preceded by Turkey Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock
26 November 1974 - 16 November 1974
Succeeded by