1997 in Turkey

8 January – Democrat Turkey Party was founded by Hüsamettin Cindoruk.
11 January – Prime minister Necmettin Erbakan invited religious order leaders to his Office . This invitation caused political unrest
24 January – Sabotage to Kirkuk–Ceyhan Oil Pipeline
2 February – Beginning of a civil disobedience action 1 minute darkness for a continuous light by turning off the lights every night for 1 minute
28 February – In a meeting of National Security Council the military members of the council asked for a secular administration (This event later on was ironically called post modern coup) ^[2]
23 April – On children’s day, Tansu Çiller, the vice prime minister, announced that the compulsory education was raised from 5 years to 8 years
15 May – Turkey enters northern Iraq with the stated aim of "supporting KDP actions against the PKK."^[3]
16 May – Yaşar Kemal won Peace Prize of the German Book Trade
22 May – Four male and six female Turkish weightlifters won the gold medal in 1997 European Weightlifting Championships
25 May – Galatasaray won the championship of the Turkish football league^[4]
21 June – Upon Necmettin Erbakan’s resignation, the president appointed Mesut Yılmaz to form the new government.
25 October – Bus accident in Konya Province 49 deaths
14 December – At the Luxembourg summit, the European Union decided to continue negotiations with Turkey

Deaths

^ Türkiye'nin 70 yılı, Tempo, İstanbul, 1998, pp 498–505
^ Sina Akşin: Kısa Türkiye Tarihi, Türkiye İş Bankası yayınları, İstanbul, 2011, ISBN 978-9944-88-172-2 p.301
^ Graham Brown, Sarah (1999). Sanctioning Saddam: The Politics of Intervention in Iraq. I.B. Tauris. p. 249. ISBN 9781860644733. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
^ Mackolik page