Tansu Ciller

Tansu Ciller

Biography

In 1993, Tansu Ciller became the first female leader of a Middle Eastern Muslim country. She was educated in both Turkey and the United States, earning her doctorate in economics from the University of Connecticut. In 1990, she left her career as a professor and entered politics, joining the True Path Party. In 1991 she was elected deputy of Istanbul and Minister of State for Economics within the coalition government of Süleyman Demirel. In 1993, she was elected the head of the True Path Party and Prime Minister of the coalition government. During this time, she was credited with transforming Turkey’s army into a modern fighting force that could effectively handle the threat faced from the Kurdish separatist group, the PKK. She also attempted to liberalize Turkey’s economy and increase individual rights for its citizens. In 1996, the coalition government collapsed, terminating Tansu’s term as Prime Minister. However, she continued to serve in government as Minister of Foreign Affairs until 1997. She retired from politics in 2002 and is currently a member of The Council of Women World Leaders.

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