Reha İsvan (1925 – 2013) was a Turkish author, journalist and political activist. She has been known for her post as the vice president of the Turkish Peace Association. She was imprisoned more than three years between February 1982 and February 1986 due to her activities at the association.

Early life and education

She was born in Şehremini,

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, in 1925. Her father was an army officer who accompanied

Mustafa Kemal Mustafa () is one of the names of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and the name means "chosen, selected, appointed, preferred", used as an Arabic given name and surname. Mustafa is a common name in the Muslim world. Given name Moustafa * Moustafa A ...

in his journey to

Samsun Samsun is a List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, city on the north coast of Turkey and a major Black Sea port. The urban area recorded a population of 738,692 in 2022. The city is the capital of Samsun Province which has a population of ...

in May 1919. She graduated from Arnavutköy Girls' High School and received a degree from the Agriculture School in Ankara.

Career and activities

Following her graduation she worked at an agriculture company for a short time and then contributed to a newspaper entitled ''Çağdaş'' (Turkish: ''Contemporary''). İsvan also worked for various periodicals. She became the vice president of the Peace Association which was established on 4 April 1977. The association was headed by Mahmut Dikerdem and was closed shortly before the

military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

on 12 September 1980. She was arrested and jailed in the Metris military prison, Istanbul, on 26 February 1982. She remained in prison until 17 February 1986 without a conviction. Then she and her husband settled in Taşköprü where they involved in agricultural activities at their farm. İsvan published a book entitled ''Gün Olur Devran Döner'' (Turkish: ''Every Cloud has a Silver Lining'').

Zeynep Oral Zeynep Birsel Oral (born 15 February 1946) is a Turkish journalist. She is also a writer, theatre critic and a cultural editor. Life Zeynep Birsel was born in Istanbul, Turkey, on 15 February 1946. She graduated from the American Collegiate Ins ...

published Reha İsvan's

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based on the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autob ...

which focused on her imprisonment.

Personal life and death

Her husband was

Ahmet İsvan Ahmet İsvan (1923–2017) was a leftist Turkish politician. He served as the mayor of Istanbul between 1973 and 1977. He was among the pioneers of the municipal socialism in Turkey. Early life and education İsvan was born in Istanbul in 1923. ...

, a social democrat politician. They married in 1950 and had three children. She died in Yalova on 8 May 2013. Her funeral prayers were performed at the Levent Mosque, Istanbul, and she was buried in Taşköprü, Yalova.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:İsvan, Reha 20th-century Turkish journalists 20th-century Turkish women writers 1925 births 2013 deaths Ankara University alumni Turkish prisoners and detainees Turkish farmers Journalists from Istanbul Turkish women journalists Turkish non-fiction writers