Razkari Party
حزب رزكاري
FounderFaysal Fakhru
FoundedApril 3, 1975 (1975-04-03)
NewspaperXebat (transl. the Struggle)
IdeologyKurdish nationalism
National affiliationMarch 8 Alliance
SloganArabic: عمل - تضحية - وفاء, romanized: ‘Amal - Taḍḥiyah - Wafā’, lit. 'Work - Sacrifice - Loyalty'[1]
Parliament of Lebanon
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Cabinet of Lebanon
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Party flag

The Razkari Party[2][lower-roman 1] (Arabic: حزب رزكاري, romanized: Ḥizb Rizkārī; Kurdish: حزبی ڕزگاری, romanized: Ḧizbî R̄izgarî) is a Lebanese-Kurdish political group that was established on 3 April 1975 by Faysal Fakhru, due to disagreement with the policies of the Kurdish Democratic Party – Lebanon (KDP-L) under Jamil Mihhu.[1][4] The three main points of disagreement that led to the formation of the Razkari Party were the KDP-L's failure to appeal to non-Kurmanji-speaking Kurds, its support for the Iraqi government's proposals in the Iraqi–Kurdish conflict, and accusations of nepotism within the party's leadership.[6] The Razkari Party continued to exist following the end of the Lebanese Civil War, becoming the only political party to represent Lebanon's estimated 100,000 Kurds, and aligning itself with Hezbollah and the March 8 Alliance.[2][5]

Lebanese Civil War

Shortly following the formation of the Razkari Party, it declared, via its official bulletin Xebat (Kurdish: خەبات, lit. 'the Struggle'), its neutrality in the 1975-76 Lebanese Civil War. Thereafter, it aligned itself with the Front of Patriotic and National Parties, which was in favor of neither the Lebanese National Movement, nor the Lebanese Front.[6]

Although the Razkari Party supported the Kurdish rebel forces fighting against the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein, on 4 December 1976 the Razkari Party joined forces with the rival pro-Iraqi KDP-L to form al-Jabha al-Wataniyya al-Kurdiyya al-'Arida (Arabic: الجبهة الوطنية الكردية العريضة, transl. the Broad Kurdish National Front, also known as the Progressive Kurdish Front).[4] The goals of the new front were to unify Kurdish factions during the Lebanese civil war, improve the sociopolitical status of Kurds in Lebanon, and uphold their rights in employment and citizenship. The unified front only lasted a year, as KDP-L leader Jamil Mihhu was arrested by Syrian authorities in 1977.[6]

Razkari II

The brief alliance with the KDP-L led to the separation of a portion of the Razkari Party to a splinter group known as the Leftist Razkari or Razkari II, led by Abdi Ibrahim, an ally of Hafiz al-Asad's Syria. This group rejected the formation of the Progressive Kurdish Front because it included the leadership of Jamil Mihhu, the leader of the KDP-L, who was deemed by them to be right-wing.[4] They accused the Razkari Party's secretary-general, Faysal Fakhru, of being pro-Iraqi and not inclusive enough to all Kurds. The splinter faction continued to function until the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in June 1982, when its secretary-general Abdi Ibrahim fled to Syria. Soon after Abdi Ibrahim's flight, one high-ranking member of the party, Jamil Hasan, broke away from the splinter organization to form the Lebanese Socialist Razkari Party. Jamil Hasan was later expelled from the party that he had formed after reconciling with Fakhru and declaring the merger of the Lebanese Socialist Razkari Party with the original Razkari Party in late 1984. The Lebanese Socialist Razkari Party ceased to exist in 1985.[6]

After the Civil War

In 2009, the then-secretary-general of the Razkari party, Mahmud Khidr Fattah Ahmad, met with a delegation from Hezbollah,[7] a group they have close ties to.[2]

As of 2015, Rudaw reported that the Razkari Party, at that point the only political organization representing the Kurds of Lebanon, was suffering from financial difficulties, with some believing that it would not survive much longer.[2]

On 5 October 2020, it was announced that the Razkari Party's then-secretary-general, Mahmud Khidr Fattah Ahmad, had died at the age of 73. The Kurdistan Democratic Party of Syria sent their condolences to the Razkari Party on the occasion.[1]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Alternative spellings include Rizkari,[3] Riz Kari,[4] Rizgari,[5] and Rezgari.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "وفاة رئيس حزب رزگاري الكوردي اللبناني عن 73 عاماً" [The head of the Lebanese-Kurdish Razkari Party has passed away at the age of 73]. Rudaw Media Network (in Arabic). 2020-10-05. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Faraydun, Bahroz (2015-09-29). "Impoverished Lebanese Kurds lack political voice". Rudaw Media Network. Retrieved 2023-08-14. Although an estimated 100,000 Kurdish people live in Lebanon, they have only one political organization to represent them, the Razkari (Liberation) Party. The Razkari Party, which has close ties to Hezbollah, is allegedly suffering from financial problems and some believe it will not be able to survive much longer. The prospect of this is disheartening to the many Kurds who feel marginalized in the country.
  3. ↑ "News from Beirut". Lebanon.Com. 1997-04-01. Retrieved 2023-08-14. The Kurdish Rizkari party called the community members to get ready to the forthcoming municipal elections and obtain cards.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Collelo, Thomas, ed. (1989). Lebanon: a country study (3rd ed.). Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division. LCCN 88600488 – via Library of Congress. Riz Kari was another Kurdish group dissatisfied with the leadership of the Kurdish Democratic Party. Established in 1975 by Faysal Fakhu, Riz Kari supported the Kurdish forces fighting against the Iraqi regime. For a brief period during the 1975 Civil War, however, Riz Kari joined forces with the Kurdish Democratic Party to form the Progressive Kurdish Front in an effort to eliminate differences in the ranks of Lebanese Kurds. Riz Kari was weakened in the mid-1970s by the defection of part of its organization, which called itself the Leftist Riz Kari, or Riz Kari II. This organization, led by Abdi Ibrahim, a staunch ally of Syria, rejected the formation of the Progressive Kurdish Front because it included the "right-wing" leadership of Mihhu.
  5. 1 2 Özdemici Cinal, Ayşe Selcan (2017-03-30). "The Mardinite Community in Lebanon: Migration of Mardin's People". Report. Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies (208): 18. ISBN 978-605-9157-17-9. The Mardinite Kurds, particularly the first generation émigrés, are politically more active (...) via their civil society organizations or political parties such as the Kurdish Democratic Party of Lebanon, Rizgari or other groups within the March 8 bloc.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Meho, Lokman I.; Maglaughlin, Kelly L. (2001-02-28). Kurdish Culture and Society: An Annotated Bibliography. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0-313-01680-6. Retrieved 2023-08-15 – via Google Books. Rezgari (The Lebanese Kurdish Party): Three reasons were used by Faysal Fakhru to justify the founding of this party on April 3, 1975: the failure of al-Parti to appeal to non-Kurmanji speakers, Mihhu's support for the Iraqi regime's plans for Kurdish autonomy, and the leadership structure of al-Parti which seemed to have been transformed into a Mihhu family organization rather than representing the interests of the whole Kurdish community. Soon after its formation, the Rezgari declared through its bulletin, Xebat (The Struggle) , its support for the Lebanese government and its neutrality towards the various factions participating in the civil war. Accordingly, it participated in Jabhat al-Ahzab wa al-Qiwa al-Qawmiyya wa al-Wataniyya fi Lubnan, which was in favor neither of the policies adopted by the Muslim-dominated Lebanese National Movement nor those of the Christian-dominated Lebanese Front. In a surprise move, on December 4, 1976, Mihhu and Fakhru put their differences and verbal attacks aside and announced the formation of al-Jabha al-Wataniyya al-Kurdiyya al-'Arida (The Broad Kurdish National Front) whose main goals were to unify Kurdish political action in Lebanon, guarantee the unity of the Kurdish community in Lebanon, improve their social and political status, and to uphold the rights of Lebanese Kurds in employment and citizenship. They also agreed to support the Lebanese National Movement and, at the same time, welcomed the intervention of the Arab Deterrence Forces led by Syria, an act seen by them as the best solution to end the war. The Front ceased exsitence in less than a year due to the imprisonment of Mihhu by the Syrians. Keeping a very low profile on the Lebanese scene after 1977, Rezgari continues to exist today. Rezgari II (The Lebanese Kurdish Party): Following the creation of the Broad Kurdish National Front between al-Parti and Rezgari, a faction within the latter split off accusing General Secretary Fakhru of "reconciling with Mihhu and returning to Kurdish tribalism." Led by 'Abdi Ibrahim, this new faction also protested Mihhu's domination of the Front and accused Fakhru of following Mihhu's pattern in not appealing to various Kurdish groups. In addition, Fakhru was accused of favoring Baghdad's autonomy plans for Iraqi Kurdistan. In early 1977, Ibrahim announced that he would maintain and preserve the basic principles of the parent party and denounce the establishment of the Front. As a result, he declared the formation of a new party, the Lebanese Kurdish Party (or Rezgari II) which replaced Rezgari in Jabhat al-Ahzab wa al-Qiwa al-Qawmiyya wa al-Wataniyya fi Lubnan. Rezgari II continued to function until the Israeli invasion in June 1982. Thereafter, the party practically ceased to exist when its General Secretary left for Syria; his attempt to revive the party three years later eneded with failure. In fact, soon after Ibrahim left in June 1982, Jamil Hasan, a leading member in the party broke away in November of the same year to establish the Lebanese Socialist Rezgari Party. Hasan himself was thrown out of the new faction after re-allying himself with Fakhru and declaring the merger of both the Socialist Party and Rezgari in late 1984. Witnessing more break-ups, the Socialist party ceased existence in 1985.
  7. ↑ "وفد من حزب الله زار مركز "حزب رزكاري": لنبذ التفرقة والتعصب الديني من أي فئة أتى" [A delegation from Hezbollah visited the "Razkari Party": renouncing discrimination and religious intolerance from any group]. Al-Ahed News (in Arabic). 2009-11-07. Retrieved 2023-08-14.


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