Mustafa Bey Barmada (; 1883 – April 2, 1953) was a

Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

statesman, politician and judge; served as the Governor General of the

State of Aleppo The State of Aleppo (; ') was one of the six states that were established by the France, French High Commissioner of the Levant, General Henri Gouraud (French Army officer), Henri Gouraud, in the Mandate for Syria and Lebanon, French Mandate of ...

between 1923 and 1924 and headed the Judiciary of Syria between 1930s and 1940s.

Early life and education

Mustafa Bey Barmada was born in 1883 in

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

to a notable Syrian family and the landlords of Harem. Son of Sadiq Barmada. Educated first in Aleppo and later studied law at

Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

Career

Began his professional career as a teacher in Aleppo and then moved to

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

to teach law. Later, he was appointed as Public prosecutor in Aleppo and then as a member of the Damascus High court of Appeal. In 1921, Barmada became the president of the Aleppo high court of Appeals. In March 1923, Barmada was named as Governor-General of the

(1923–1924) under the French Mandate of Syria after Kamil Pasha al-Qudsi. Barmada, the Istanbul-trained legal expert resigned as a Governor on January 5, 1924, after eight months in office because he obstructed the implementation of French policies. His resignation – reportedly because he did not accept the French plan to replace gold as the Monetary exchange with paper currency. In 1924, Barmada became the President of the Aleppo Lawyers Syndicate but after five months the French mandate in Syria sacked him from the position because he refused to obey the High Commissioner. In 1939, President Hashim Al- Atassi appointed Mustafa Barmada as the prime minister of Syria after the resignation of Lutfi al-Haffar, But Barmada has decided to decline the office and stay in his position as the President of the Court of Cassation (the leading authority on the Syrian Judiciary). In 1947, Mustafa Barmada was elected as a member of the Syrian parliament for Aleppo and he was elected as the chairman of the parliamentary committee. In 1948, Mustafa Barmada with other Aleppo Leaders such as

Rushdi al-Kikhya Rushdi al-Kikhya (; 1899 – 14 March 1987) was a Syrian political leader who founded the People's party in 1948. Kikhya was elected as a Speaker of the Parliament of Syria between 1949 and 1951, and he was elected five terms as a member of the ...

and Nazim al-Qudsi formed the People's party. In 1948, Mustafa Barmada refused the offer to be the prime minister of Syria from the president Shukri Al-Quwwatli, after the resignation of Jammil Mardam.

Death

Mustafa Bey Barmada died on April 2, 1953, in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, Syria.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barmada, Mustafa Syrian nationalists Pashas 1883 births 1953 deaths National Bloc (Syria) politicians Prime ministers of Syria Members of the People's Assembly of Syria Barmada family Istanbul University Faculty of Law alumni People's Party (Syria) politicians Syrian Sunni Muslims Governor General of the State of Aleppo 20th-century Syrian politicians