#Noman Çelebicihan

[redjaybathood]

This is not my text but a translation of a text originally posted here.

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"Today commemorates the death of Noman Çelebicihan, a leader of the Crimean Tatar people.

January 26, 1918, he was imprisoned as the result of the Red Terror, and a month later, on February 23, in Sevastopol (Aqyar) they shot him and threw his body into the sea. 

I will talk about why it is important to learn about him, below.

Noman Çelebicihan was the one who revived the tradition of Qurultay, a national democratic assembly.

It was under his leadership that the Crimean Tatar self-awareness began to flourish for the first time since the annexy of Crimean Khanate (1783).

During the February Revolution of year '17, demand for self-awareness in society is growing, and in April, Çelebicihan becomes a comimissioner of spiritual leadership and first democratically elected mufti of Crimea. This was when he also became the first Mufti of Muslims of Lithuania, Poland, and Belarus. 

Meanwhile, the Muslim Executive Committe becames the main executive body of the government. 

In Summer 1917, Crimean national military units began to form, the so called Squadrones. Çelebicihan then calls for a formation of Muslim Armed Forces.

December 1917, Qurultay has declared Crimean Democratic Republic, founders of which were Çelebicihan and like-minded individuals. This was also when they adopted a democratic Constitution drafted by him, Cafer Seydamet and other peers. 

It talked about electoral right for everyone, any and all class ranks or titles were canceled, as were their priveleges, it asserted equal rights of women and men, established regulations on assembly of parlaiment. A regulation on election of national government - Directory - was also established. 

Çelebicihan, as well as Cafer Seydamet (who became a minister of foreign affairs and military minister), maintained connections to Central Council of Ukraine (Ukrainian Central Rada). In Spring 1917, by an invite of the Central Council, Crimea sent 10 people in a delegation to participate in the work of the Congress of Nations (Congress of the Enslaved Peoples of Russia) in Kyiv.

Apart of all that noted above, Çelebicihan lifted the obligation of Crimean Tatar women to wear a veil, which led to a wave of disconent from conservative part of populatoin. 

At the Congress, he declared and advocated for the equality of all nations that live in Crimea: "Our mission is to create a state like Switzerland. Nations of Crimea are a beautiful bouquet, and every nation needs equal rights and conditions, because we are to walk side by side."

It is thanks to Çelebicihan that a women's gymnasium (a school) and technical school were opened in Simferopol (Aqmescit), that a Pedagogic Institute based on Zıncırlı medrese was opened, and that there were established short-term advanced training courses for teachers. 

In addtion, he was a writer and a poet, one of his most known works is "A Prayer for Swallows", and his poem-pledge Ant Etkenmen is now a national anthem of all Crimean Tatars.

You can find the lyrics and a modern translation today in the Kitap Qalesi publication

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A post shared by Kitap Qalesi | Кримськотатарське видавництво (@kitap_qalesi)

Listen to it here:

Bolsheviks seizing power endangered the existence of Crimean People Republic. 

January 4, 1918, Çelebicihan took initiative to rsign from the positions of leadership.

Due to attempts to negotiate with Bolsheviks about the cessation of armed struggle in Crimea, on January 18, 1918, they took over the government in Simferopol (Aqmescit), arrested Çelebicihan and transported him to Sevastopol (Aqyar) in an airplane. February 23, 1918, he was shot in the city prison.

This is not the full list of what Çelebicihan has become famous for, in a fairly short time. He wrote poetry, published papers, organized an underground society for Crimean Tatar youth in İstanbul, there were also other changes that were introduced in the Republic."

A longer text is to come, and the author plans to publish it on her blog on Drukarnia. It already has an awesome post on where to learn Crimean Tatar language. And while it's in Ukrainian, most browsers, whether on mobile or PC, support auto translation. I translated this thread just because twitter makes it really tedious to read threads in other languages. So like. Subscribe and support the author!

[ohsalome]

[huffleporg]

Frank? Ernest? Interesting question. 

(it’s actually Noman Çelebicihan.)  

[today-in-wwi]

Bolsheviks Seize Sevastopol

Noman Çelebicihan (1885-1918), President of the Crimean People’s Republic.

December 16 1917, Sevastopol--While the Bolsheviks had managed to secure power in much of Russia, various outlying regions, especially those not populated by ethnic Russians, began to organize their own governments or in some cases actively fight against the Bolsheviks.  In some cases, the Bolsheviks, embracing a Wilsonian sense of self-determination, allowed independence movements to proceed; in others they swiftly cracked down.  On December 13, the Crimean People’s Republic was declared by a council of Crimean Tatars.  However, the Bolsheviks had a major presence in the Black Sea Fleet, based out of Sevastopol, and on December 16, sailors from the fleet seized the city, beginning outright conflict between the Bolsheviks and the new Crimean government.

Today in 1916: Nivelle Replaces Joffre in France Today in 1915: Arrest in DuPont Explosion Case Today in 1914: German Fleet Raids Scarborough, Escapes

[ohsalome]

A Russian court sentenced Imam Raif Fevziev, a defendant in the "Crimean Muslim case," to 17 years in prison.

The lawyer of the sentenced Crimean imam Edem Semedlyaev commented on the sentence handed down by the Russian court, saying that his client was sentenced to 17 years "for talking about Islam."

"Murderers don't get such sentences. A man was given 17 years for a 70-minute conversation about Islam today," said lawyer Edem Semedlyaev.

Defenders of those arrested and convicted in the "Hizb ut-Tahrir case" consider their persecution to be motivated by religion. The lawyers point out that those persecuted in this case by the Russian law enforcement agencies are mainly Crimean Tatars, as well as Ukrainians, Russians, Tajiks, Azerbaijanis and Crimeans of other ethnic origin professing Islam.

According to the latest data, russia is currently illegally detaining 158 political prisoners, 111 of them are representatives of the indigenous Crimean Tatar people.

In a sickly ironic way, today in Ukraine is the Day of political prisoners. If you are able, please consider donating to Noman Çelebicihan crimean tatar batalion to help them liberate their home. Paypal: liberationofcrimea@gmail.com