Emine Mebrure Gönenç (1900 – 6 December 1981) was a Turkish school teacher, politician and one of the first 18 female members of the Turkish parliament.

Early life

Mebrure Gönenç was born in 1900 to İbrahim, a clerk in the office for personal private expenditures of

Ottoman Sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire (), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to Dissolution of the Ottoman Em ...

Abdul Hamid II Abdulhamid II or Abdul Hamid II (; ; 21 September 184210 February 1918) was the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1876 to 1909, and the last sultan to exert effective control over the fracturing state. He oversaw a Decline and modernizati ...

(reigned 1876–1909), and his spouse Didar in

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 ...

, then

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. According to an unofficial information of the family', she was born in 1898. She finished her primary education at

Üsküdar Üsküdar () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 35 km2, and its population is 524,452 (2022). It is a large and densely populated district on the Anatolian (Asian) shore of the Bosphorus. It is border ...

Vocational High School for Girls, and then attended "Ottoman Union School" in

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

, which educated in Turkish and

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

. In 1914, she entered Arnavutköy American High School for Girls graduating in 1919.

School teacher career

Emine Mebrure began a career serving as a teacher of French at Girls' School in

Beylerbeyi Beylerbeyi is a neighbourhood in the municipality and district of Üsküdar, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its population is 5,168 (2022). It is located on the Asian shore of the Bosporus, to the north of the Bosphorus Bridge. It is bordered on the ...

. She then taught English and Science at American School in Gedikpaşa. Between 1925 and 1926, shortly after the establishment of the Republic of Turkey, she accompanied a traveling exhibition for the promotion of goods made in Turkey on a journey aboard SS ''Kardeniz'', which extended up to

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

. In 1927, she married physician Ahmet Remzi, who was a resident of

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

in southern Turkey. She followed her spouse to Adana, and settled there. From this marriage, two children were born.

Politician career

In 1930, she was elected as one of the first female members into the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...

of Adana. She later became a member of the Municipal council of

Mersin Mersin () is a large city and port on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast of Mediterranean Region, Turkey, southern Turkey. It is the provincial capital of the Mersin Province (formerly İçel). It is made up of four district governorates ...

. According to the law of suffrage enacted in 1934,

Turkish women Women obtained full political participation rights in Turkey, including the right to vote and the right to run for office locally, in 1930, and nationwide in 1934. Article 10 of the Turkish Constitution bans any discrimination, state or pri ...

were granted to vote and run for a seat in the

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 ...

. She assumed the surname "Gönenç" after the enactment of the 1934 Surname Law. She was nominated by the

Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...

(CHP) for the 1935 general election. She was elected into the 5th Parliament as a deputy of

Afyonkarahisar Afyonkarahisar (, 'poppy, opium', ''kara'' 'black', ''hisar'' 'fortress') is a major city in western Turkey. It is the administrative centre of Afyonkarahisar Province and Afyonkarahisar District. Its population is 251,799 (2021). Afyon is in the ...

. She became so one of the first 18 female members of the parliament. Gönenç took part at the 12th

International Congress of Women The International Congress of Women was created so that groups of existing women's suffrage movements could come together with other women's groups around the world. It served as a way for women organizations across the nation to establish formal ...

held in Istanbul between 18–26 April 1935. She kept her seat in the following 6th and 7th Parliament until the 1946 general election held on 21 July. In a report about her electoral district she prepared for the parliament in 1935, Gönenç emphasized the importance of the enlightenment of the villagers and the fight against alcoholism. She added that the women were socially not sufficient active, the high schools lack teachers and the thermal springs in the area need to be developed and opened for tourism. She served in the parliamentary committee for public works during her term.

Social responsibility

In 1949, Gönenç became chairperson of the Association for the Blind and its School for the Blind, which was an institution affiliated with the Ministry of Health. She played an important role in the adoption of the Braille alphabet in Turkey as she was also

visually impaired Visual or vision impairment (VI or VIP) is the partial or total inability of visual perception. In the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment, visual impairment may cause the individual difficul ...

in a high grade. Gönenç died on 6 December 1981 from cardiac insufficiency.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonenc, Mebrure 1900 births Schoolteachers from Istanbul Alumni of Arnavutköy American High School for Girls Schoolteachers from the Ottoman Empire 20th-century Turkish women politicians Turkish city councillors Republican People's Party (Turkey) politicians Deputies of Afyonkarahisar Members of the 5th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 6th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 7th Parliament of Turkey 1981 deaths Women's suffrage in Turkey International Congress of Women people