Fikri Sönmez (widely known as ''Terzi Fikri'' ("Fikri the Tailor")) (1938 - 4 May 1985) was a Turkish

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

politician, who served as the mayor of

Fatsa Fatsa is a municipality and district of Ordu Province, Turkey. Its area is 363 km2, and its population is 126,775 (2022). It lies on the Black Sea coast. Name The oldest recorded name of the town is Polemonion (, Latinized as Polemonium), af ...

district of

Ordu Province Ordu Province () is a province and metropolitan municipality of Turkey, located on the Black Sea coast. Its area is 5,914 km2, and its population is 763,190 (2022). Its adjacent provinces are Samsun to the northwest, Tokat to the southwest, ...

between 1979 and 1980.

Early years

He was born in the

Chveneburi Georgians in Turkey ( ka, ქართველები თურქეთში, tr) refers to citizens and denizens of Turkey who are, or descend from, ethnic Georgians. Numbers and distribution In the census of 1965, those who spoke Georg ...

(

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

Georgian) village of Kabakdağı in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. After the primary school, he started to work as a tailor in a workshop. He moved to

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 ...

, he joined the Workers Party of Turkey (TİP) in the 1960s. He took part in protests against the Turkey visits of the

United States Sixth Fleet The Sixth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy operating as part of United States Naval Forces Europe and Africa. The Sixth Fleet is headquartered at Naval Support Activity Naples, Italy. The officially stated mission of the Sixt ...

since 1969 on the side of Dev-Genç (Revolutionary Youth). From 1972 to 1974, Sönmez was imprisoned for his support to the Turkish revolutionary activist Mahir Çayan. After 1975, he joined political activities in the cities of

Ordu Ordu () or Altınordu is a port city on the Black Sea coast of Turkey and the capital of Ordu Province. The city forms the urban part of the Altınordu, Ordu, Altınordu district, with a population of 235,096 in 2023. Name Kotyora, the origina ...

Giresun Giresun () is a city in the Black Sea Region of northeastern Turkey, about west of the city of Trabzon. It is the seat of Giresun Province and Giresun District.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 ...

Mayorship

After the death of Nazmiye Komitoğlu, who was the mayor of

from the

Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...

(CHP), he ran for the vacant seat as an independent. After his election as the mayor, he split Fatsa into eleven regions and created people's committees. He made campaigns against the violence against women, the poor infrastructure in Fatsa, gambling, diseases because of the bad conditions in the town. Because of his success in the town, he got support from different political movements in the town. He was blamed creating a new state inside the Turkish Republic by the Justice Party (AP). On 11 July 1980, Turkish military conducted an operation against the town. Fikri Sönmez was arrested and put into prison. He died of a heart attack in

Amasya Amasya () is a city in northern Turkey, in the Black Sea Region. It was called Amaseia or Amasia in antiquity."Amasya" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol ...

penitentiary on 4 May 1985. He was survived by his wife Nurten Sönmez, he married in 1962, and his sons Naci and Yusuf.

External links

A history of social struggles in Fatsa (1960 - 1980), Boğaziçi University, Kerem Morgül

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonmez, Fikri Turkish communists Turkish socialists 1938 births 1985 deaths Turkish people who died in prison custody Mayors of places in Turkey People from Fatsa Turkish people of Georgian descent Prisoners who died in Turkish detention