Maamun al-Kuzbari (1914 – 2 March 1998
) ( ar, مأمون الكزبري, Maʾmūn al-Kuzbarī) was a
Syrian literary personality, politician and acting head of state (29 September – 20 November 1961) from a prominent
Damascus family.
Career
He studied
International law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
at the
University of Lyon
The University of Lyon (french: Université de Lyon), located in Lyon and Saint-Étienne, France, is a center for higher education and research comprising 11 members and 24 associated institutions. The three main universities in this center are: C ...
's affiliate
Saint Joseph University in the
Lebanese capital,
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
, and became an attorney in Damascus in 1943 and a professor at
Damascus University
The University of Damascus ( ar, جَامِعَةُ دِمَشْقَ, ''Jāmi‘atu Dimashq'') is the largest and oldest university in Syria, located in the capital Damascus and has campuses in other Syrian cities. It was founded in 1923 through ...
in 1948. He entered parliament as an independent in 1953, allying himself with military strongman
Adib al-Shishakli. He was elected Speaker of parliament and chairman of the Constitutional Assembly charged by Shishakli to amend the constitution. Shishakli also appointed him secretary general of the
Arab Liberation Movement
The Arab Liberation Movement ( ar, حركة التحرر العربي ''Ḥarakat Al-Tahrir Al-'Arabiy''; french: Mouvement du liberation arabe) was a Syrian political party founded on 25 August 1952 by the President of Syria Adib Shishakli, duri ...
(ALM), Shishakli's
political vehicle. He also managed the party's daily newspaper, ''Al Tahrir al Arabi'' ("The Arab Liberation").
After Shishakli was overthrown, Kuzbari in his position as Speaker, and according to the constitution, was declared acting President in an emergency session of parliament on 25 February 1954. He succeeded in avoiding military confrontation among the supporters and opponents of Shishakli within the Syrian army and called the former President
Hashim al-Atassi
Hashim al-Atassi ( ar, هاشم الأتاسي, Hāšim al-ʾAtāsī; 11 January 1875 – 5 December 1960) was a Syrian nationalist and statesman and the President of Syria from 1936 to 1939, 1949 to 1951 and 1954 to 1955.
Background and e ...
, whose administration was interrupted by Shishakli's
coup in 1949, to come back to Damascus in order to complete his term.
Kuzbari remained head of the ALM. He participated in the new elections and returned to parliament in October of that year. In February 1955 he was appointed minister of justice under Prime Minister
Sabri al Asali and in September of that same year he became minister of education under Prime Minister Said al-Ghazzi. He kept that post until June 1956. In May 1956 he became acting president of Damascus University. In 1958, under president
Shukri al-Kuwatli
Shukri al-Quwatli ( ar, شكري القوّتلي, Shukrī al-Quwwatlī; 6 May 189130 June 1967) was the first president of post-independence Syria. He began his career as a dissident working towards the independence and unity of the Ottoman Em ...
, Kuzbari took part, as a member of the government, in unification talks with
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
that resulted in the formation of the
United Arab Republic
The United Arab Republic (UAR; ar, الجمهورية العربية المتحدة, al-Jumhūrīyah al-'Arabīyah al-Muttaḥidah) was a sovereign state in the Middle East from 1958 until 1971. It was initially a political union between Eg ...
. He was politically inactive during the union and became President of the Syrian Lawyers Bar.
Three years later he endorsed the
1961 Syrian coup d'état
The Syrian coup d'état of 1961 was an uprising by disgruntled Syrian Army officers on 28 September 1961, that resulted in the break-up of the United Arab Republic and the restoration of an independent Syrian Republic.
While the army had all t ...
that dissolved the UAR. One of the leading officers of that coup was Kuzbari's cousin,
Haydar al-Kuzbari, and the coup leaders asked Mamoun to form the first post-UAR government. He formed a cabinet consisting mainly of technocrats and university professors. He assumed in addition to his role as prime minister, the ministry of Defense and Foreign Affairs and acted as president until his resignation in November 1961. His main objective was to re-establish an elected democratic government through a free and democratic elections.
Parliamentary elections took place in December 1961. Kuzbari was elected again as a deputy in parliament and Speaker.
Nazim al-Kudsi
Nazim al-Qudsi ( ar, ناظم القدسي, Nāẓim al-Qudsī or Nadhim Al-Kudisi; 14 February 1906 – 6 February 1998), was a Syrian politician who served as President of Syria from 14 December 1961 to 8 March 1963.
Early life and education
...
became president. On 28 March 1962 both Kuzbari and Kudsi were arrested in an attempted coup by military strongman
Abd al-Karim al-Nahlawi, but were released when it failed. He remained speaker until 12 September 1962.
He represented Syria in the
Non-Aligned Movement
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.
The movement originated in the aftermath o ...
Conferences in Bandung on 1955 and in several other international conferences.
Exile and death
He was exiled after another
coup on 8 March 1963 and settled for a short time in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
before relocating to
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
. He taught at
Rabat, Casablanca and Marrakech Universities. He taught and published several books in Syria and Morocco in the interpretation of civil law. He actively participated in propagation of the Arab language in the Moroccan universities and courts. His books are used as reference in the Moroccan courts.
In 1996, he moved to
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
at the end of the country's
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. He died in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
on 2 March 1998 and was buried in Damascus.
References
;Citations
*Sami Moubayed "Steel & Silk: Men and Women Who Shaped Syria 1900-2000" (Cune Press, Seattle, 2005).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuzbari, Maamun al-
1914 births
1998 deaths
Damascus University faculty
Foreign ministers of Syria
Presidents of Syria
Prime Ministers of Syria
Speakers of the People's Assembly of Syria
Syrian ministers of education
Syrian ministers of justice
Syrian ministers of defense
Syrian Sunni Muslims
University of Lyon alumni
Vice presidents of Syria
20th-century Syrian politicians