Seyid Riza

Seyid Riza was born in Dersim, the rugged highland region, into the Seyid Hasaniler tribe, and became the leading spiritual and political figure of its Alevi-Zaza community. Revered as a Pir and chief among the Dersim tribes, he embodied the fierce independence of the mountain Kurds who had governed themselves for centuries.

As the state sought to crush regional autonomy, Seyid Riza emerged as the principal leader of the great 1937-38 Dersim uprising - one of the biggest and most tragic episodes of Kurdish resistance in the early 20th century. He led his tribesmen against a massive campaign of suppression, appealing fruitlessly to the League of Nations and to Britain, France and the United States for help.

Betrayed during negotiations and arrested in 1937, Seyid Riza was tried and hanged along with his son. In his final moments, so witnesses recorded, he calmly placed the rope around his own neck and cried out against what he called a great injustice. His fearless death made him an immortal symbol of Dersim and of Kurdish endurance against overwhelming odds.