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Former Turkish first lady urges progress through education

Al-Monitor's exclusive interview with Turkey's former first lady, Hayrunnisa Gul.
Turkey's incumbent President Abdullah Gul and his wife Hayrunnisa Gul talk to the media as they leave a polling station after casting their votes in Ankara August 10, 2014. Turks began voting on Sunday with Tayyip Erdogan poised to become the country's first elected president, fulfilling his dream of what he calls a "new Turkey" and his opponents say will be an increasingly authoritarian nation. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR41UXL

After seven years in residence, President Abdullah Gul and First Lady Hayrunnisa Gul departed the Cankaya Presidential Palace when Recep Tayyip Erdogan was sworn in as Turkey’s 12th president on Aug. 28, 2014. At the official presidency handover ceremony, Turkey's outgoing president expressed special gratitude to his wife for “her support to him over the years even during difficult times.” Around that time, she made headlines for expressing disappointment with her husband’s treatment by some of his fellow Justice and Development Party members.

Her frankness surprised many who knew her as usually reserved and quiet, while simultaneously impressing those women and men who praised her sincerity and boldness. Journalist Ahu Ozyurt wrote, “Mrs. Hayrunnisa Gul is a symbol of typical Turkish women: a silent powerhouse who stands by her man. A kind and gentle mother who keeps her silence until that last drop. But when she is done, she is done for good.”

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