Mehmet Çakıcı (born 13 September 1966) is a

Turkish Cypriot Turkish Cypriots or Cypriot Turks ( or ; ) are so called ethnic Turks originating from Cyprus. Turkish Cypriots are mainly Sunni Muslims. Following the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571, about 30,000 Turkish settlers were given land onc ...

politician and psychiatrist. He served as the first leader of the

Communal Democracy Party The Communal Democracy Party (, TDP) is a social-democratic political party in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The party came into being in May 2007 as a merger of the Peace and Democracy Movement with the Communal Liberation Party. At th ...

(TDP) between 2007 and 2013 and has been a member of the Assembly of the Republic since 2003. He then served as an independent member of the parliament for the

Lefkoşa District Lefkoşa District () is a district of Northern Cyprus. It is divided into two sub-districts: Lefkoşa Sub-district and Değirmenlik Sub-district.Communal Liberation Party The Communal Liberation Party (, TKP) was a left-wing political party in Northern Cyprus. History The TKP was established in 1976 by Alpay Durduran.Vincent E McHale (1983) ''Political parties of Europe'', Greenwood Press, p109 It won six of t ...

. His tenure as an MP ended in 2018 after his party failed to reach the election threshold.

Early life and professional career

Çakıcı was born in

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

, the capital of Cyprus, in 1966. He graduated from the Atatürk Primary School, Bayraktar Middle School and the

Lefkoşa Türk Lisesi Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capita ...

(Nicosia Turkish High School), and started his medical degree in the

Marmara University Marmara University (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Marmara Üniversitesi'') is a Public university, public research university in Istanbul, Turkey. The university, named after the Sea of Marmara, was founded as a university in 1982. However, its ...

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 ...

in 1985. In 1991 and 1992 he completed his foundation training in psychiatry in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and became a specialist in psychiatry in the

Bakırköy Psychiatric Hospital Bakırköy Psychiatric Hospital, short for Bakırköy Mazhar Osman Mental Health and Neurological Diseases Education and Research Hospital (), is a mental health hospital of the Health Ministry located in Bakırköy district of Istanbul, Turkey. T ...

after training between 1994 and 1998. Between 1996 and 2000, he also completed a PhD in forensic medicine in the Marmara University. He won the 70th Year Special Award of the Bakırköy Psychiatric Hospital and Best Research Award at the 33rd Turkish National Congress of Psychiatry in 1997 with an article he published. He worked the prevent the use of drugs by students in Istanbul. In 1998, he returned to Cyprus. He received an award from the Turkish Cypriot

Security Forces Command The Security Forces Command () is the military and security force of the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. It is a 15,000 strong force primarily made up of conscripted Turkish Cypriot males between the ages of 18 and 40. It is ...

for his successful work aimed at reducing suicides in the Turkish Cypriot military and became the head of the Psychology Department of the Faculty of Sciences and Literature of the

Near East University Near East University (NEU; , commonly referred to as YDÜ) is a private university located in Northern Cyprus. It was founded in North Nicosia in 1988, by Suat Günsel, a Turkish Cypriot who is the 100% owner of NEU. The chairman of the board o ...

. He became an associate professor in 2001. He then sustained an active life in non-governmental professional organizations, including the leadership of the Turkish Cypriot Association of Mental Disorders and the Secretary General of the

Turkish Cypriot Medical Association 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 wo ...

. In 2001, he opened the first substance addiction treatment center in Northern Cyprus with beds. He also established the Turkish Cypriot Mental Health Institute. He has published over 60 scientific articles and nine books (as of 2009) on violence against women and child abuse.

Political career

He was one of the founding members of the

Peace and Democracy Movement The Peace and Democracy Movement () was a social democratic political party in the '' de facto'' Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. In the legislative A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws f ...

(BDH) in 2003 and was elected as a member of the parliament for the

Lefkoşa District Lefkoşa District () is a district of Northern Cyprus. It is divided into two sub-districts: Lefkoşa Sub-district and Değirmenlik Sub-district.2003 parliamentary election. He became the party's secretary general in 2004. He was subsequently re-elected as a member of the parliament in 2009 and 2013. After the merger of the BDH and the

Communal Liberation Party The Communal Liberation Party (, TKP) was a left-wing political party in Northern Cyprus. History The TKP was established in 1976 by Alpay Durduran.Vincent E McHale (1983) ''Political parties of Europe'', Greenwood Press, p109 It won six of t ...

in 2007, he became the first leader of the

. He resigned from his position in 2013, after his party won 3 seats in the parliament in what he deemed as a failure to keep his promise. In November 2016, Çakıcı resigned from the TDP, claiming that the party had been rendered a place where nepotism was rife by the policies of his successor,

Cemal Özyiğit Cemal is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Jamal (Arabic: جَمَال jamāl) which means "beauty, charm". People named Cemal include: First name * Cemal Erçman (1896/1904–?), Turkish weightlifter * Cemal Gürsel (1895� ...

. Being bound by law to continue as an independent MP for the rest of his term, he founded a new party with the name

, and became the president of its board of directors.

Private life

He is married to the psychiatrist associate professor Ebru Çakıcı and has a son and a daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cakici, Mehmet Living people People from North Nicosia 1966 births Marmara University alumni Peace and Democracy Movement politicians Communal Democracy Party politicians Members of the Assembly of the Republic (Northern Cyprus) Academic staff of Near East University Cypriot physicians Psychiatrists Leaders of political parties in Northern Cyprus Turkish Cypriot expatriates in Turkey Turkish Cypriot expatriates in the United Kingdom Politicians from Nicosia