Abdullah Levent Tüzel (born 12 July 1961) is a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

politician who was one of the founders of the Labour Party (EMEP) in 1996. He was a Member of Parliament for Istanbul's third electoral district, had been elected as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

in the 2011 general election with the backing of the Labour, Democracy and Freedom Bloc. He was with the parliamentary group of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). Tüzel graduated from

Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

Law school and has been a freelance lawyer since 1985. Founding the Labour Party in 1996, he managed resigned before the 2011 general election in order to contest the election as an independent from

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. Despite recent disagreements between EMEP and the HDP regarding the influence of

Kurdish nationalism Kurdish nationalism () is a nationalist political movement which asserts that Kurds are a nation and espouses the creation of an independent Kurdistan from Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. Early Kurdish nationalism had its roots in the Ottoman ...

within the party, Tüzel joined the HDP and was HDP Member of Parliament until the end of his term.

Early life and career

Abdullah Levent Tüzel was born on 12 July 1961 in

Bulancak Bulancak ( Georgian: ''ბულანჩაკი'') is a town in Giresun Province on the Black Sea coast of Turkey, near the city of Giresun. Its former name is Terastios. It is the seat of Bulancak District.Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

Faculty of Law. In 1985, he became a freelance lawyer. He became a member of the Human Rights Foundation Istanbul executive board and also served as the President of the Modern Lawyers Association Istanbul Branch.

Political career

Labour Party

In 1996, Tüzel became one of the founding members of the Labour Party (EMEP) and served as the party's leader until 1 June 2007, after which he resigned to contest the 2007 general election as an

independent candidate An independent politician or non-affiliated politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have polit ...

. He was supported by the

Thousand Hope Candidates The Thousand Hope Candidates ( Turkish: ''Bin Umut Adayları'') was an electoral alliance between four left-wing political parties in Turkey, formed in preparation for the 2007 general election. The alliance contested the election by fielding ca ...

bloc, formed of several small left-wing organisations that aimed to bypass the 10%

election threshold The electoral threshold, or election threshold, is the minimum share of votes that a candidate or political party requires before they become entitled to representation or additional seats in a legislature. This limit can operate in various w ...

by fielding candidates as independents. Running for election in İzmir's first electoral district, he failed to secure enough votes to win a seat in

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. He subsequently resumed his role as the leader of the Labour Party.

Election to Parliament

In the 2011 general election, Tüzel once again resigned from the Labour Party to contest the election as an independent, this time supported by the

Labour, Democracy and Freedom Bloc The Labour, Democracy and Freedom Bloc ( Turkish: ''Emek, Demokrasi ve Özgürlük Bloğu'') was an electoral alliance formed by the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) with several other smaller left-wing parties and political movements in ...

. Contesting the election in Istanbul's third electoral district, he won a seat and became one of the 35 Bloc MPs elected to Parliament.

Peoples' Democratic Party

In 2013, Tüzel joined the newly formed Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), which had been formed by a coalition of left-wing political groups that had participated in the

Peoples' Democratic Congress The Peoples' Democratic Congress (, HDK) is a union of numerous left-wing political movements, organisations and parties in Turkey that aims to fundamentally recreate Turkish politics and represent oppressed, exploited individuals who face ethni ...

(HDK). The Labour Party was initially part of the HDP, though later withdrew over disagreements over the inclusion of Kurdish nationalist parties in the HDP. However, as a proponent of freeing

Abdullah Öcalan Abdullah Öcalan ( ; ; born 4 April 1948 or 1949), also known as Apo (short for Abdullah in Turkish; Kurdish for "uncle"), is a founding member of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Öcalan was based in Syria from 1979 to 1998. He ...

, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdish separatist

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...

(PKK), Tüzel remained as a HDP MP and the Labour Party decided to support the HDP during the June 2015 general election, in which Tüzel was re-elected as an MP from third electoral district.

References

External links

MP profile on the
Grand National Assembly of Turkey website {{DEFAULTSORT:Tuzel, Abdullah Levent 1961 births Living people People from Bulancak Peoples' Democratic Party (Turkey) politicians Members of the 25th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 24th Parliament of Turkey Istanbul University Faculty of Law alumni