“A Politician Journalist and An Opponent Journal: Mewlanzade Rifat and Serbestî Journal”

Abstract

Mewlanzade Rifat was a renowned and significant figure of the Kurdish nationalist movement at the beginning of the 20th century. He was known by his identities as a journalist, a writer and a politician. Beside the journal Serbestî, he acted as the executive and administrator of many other publications which are mentioned in this article. Among all those, Serbestî was the longest-lasting one.Although with intervals from time to time, the journal Serbestî was published for more than twelve years. There are no other Kurdish journals or publications of those times that lived as long as Serbestî did. Of course, there were occasional alterations in the editorial policy of Serbestî during that long time, which are addressed in this work in three periods. In the third period, Serbestî was published as an organ linked to the Kurdistan Tealî Association. As a result of that fact, the content and theme of the articles changed in that period. The first period, starts from the publication of the journal and lasts until 21st April 1909, the Martial Court’s resolution for exile. The second period starts from the time of exile in Egypt and lasts until the end of 1912. The third period starts after a long lasting pause of about five years, and Serbestî becomes a publication of the Society for the Rise of Kurdistan. In line with that new function, the content and theme of the articles also changed during that period. It is when Mewlanzade Rifat becomes one of the activists and leaders of the Kurdish national movement

Keywords

• Serbestî (Liberation), Mewlanzade Rifat, journalism, Kurdish journalism, society for the rise of Kurdistan