Öget Öktem Tanör (born 1934 or 1935) is the first

neuropsychologist Neuropsychology is a branch of psychology concerned with how a person's cognition and behavior are related to the brain and the rest of the nervous system. Professionals in this branch of psychology often focus on how injuries or illnesses of t ...

from

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. In 2017, she was charged with "terrorism propaganda" by the Turkish government for signing a petition calling on the government to halt its military operations in the

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...

-populated areas of the country.

Career

In a 2016 interview, Tanör stated that she had been interested in psychology and neurology since she was 15 years old. She said that she faced opposition from her family when she expressed a desire to study medicine; they put pressure on her to study law instead. According to her, experiences at

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...

and

Geneva University The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...

helped her turn to psychology. She completed her

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

in 1981, and began working in Ankara in 1983. Considered "Turkey's first neuropsychologist," Tanör founded Turkey's first neuropsychology clinic. Currently an emeritus professor at

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

, Tanör has also been a guest lecturer at many other institutions. She has been described as one of Turkey's most respected scholars, while her students have referred to her as "a hard-working, colourful character hois tireless when it comes to teaching and sharing her knowledge and experiences."

Terrorism charges

Tanör fled the country with her husband Bülent Tanör, a professor of law, during the military coup of 1971, but returned to the country to teach. She has been charged with "terrorism propaganda" by the government of

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician serving as the List of presidents of Turkey, 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as prime minister of Turkey from 2003 to 2014 and as Lis ...

, as a result of signing a petition asking the government to halt its military operations in the Kurdish part of Turkey. She was also threatened with the loss of her pension. She is not permitted to travel abroad, and no longer has the rights she once did as a civil servant. Tanör was one of hundreds of academics, and of nearly 100,000 civil servants, who were

purged In history, religion and political science, a purge is a position removal or execution of people who are considered undesirable by those in power from a government, another organization, their team leaders, or society as a whole. A group undertak ...

following the

2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt On 15 July 2016, a faction within the Turkish Armed Forces, organized as the Peace at Home Council, attempted a coup d'état against state institutions, including the government and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They attempted to seize cont ...

. She has stated that her restrictions were part of a government effort to silence opposition, and has expressed disappointment at being unable to teach.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanor, Oget Oktem Living people Neuropsychologists Turkish women academics Academic staff of Istanbul University Turkish neurologists Freedom of expression in Turkey 1930s births Turkish women physicians Turkish physicians 20th-century Turkish physicians 21st-century Turkish physicians 20th-century women physicians 21st-century women physicians