Nazem Koudsi

Nazem Koudsi (1900 - 1998) (Arab: ناظمالقدسي) is a politician Syria N, who exerted the functions of Head of State of the December 14th 1961 with the March 8th 1963.

Political career

Koudsi is born with Alep in 1900, it makes its studies at the university of Damas or it obtains a license in right, it studies then with the American Université of Beirut and with the Université of Geneva. It returns to Syria in 1935, or it joined the national Bloc, a political party opposed to the French Mandat in Syria, it quickly became one of its principal members with Alep. The party aimed to put an end to the French mandate in Syria by the political and diplomatic way, and not by the military way.

In 1936, it gains the legislative elections under National the Bloc label. He was opposed to the direction of the national Block in connection with the Sandjak d' Alexandrette, he leaves the party following this dissension. Following that, it decides creates in Alep a coalition of intellectual around the famous lawyer Rushdi Al-Kikhiya who shared his political sights. The two men were easily elected at the Syrian Parliament in 1943. The opposition was very opposite with the nomination of Shukri Kuwatli, the candidate of the national Block like chair republic. But in August 1943, Kuwatli is elected, and to calm the opposition, it names Koudsi like first ambassador of Syria to the the United States.

In 1947, it founds in Alep with Kikhiya the Party of the people. It was the largest opposition party with the national Party (old national Block) which had remained faithful to president Kuwatli. The founders of the party were mainly the notable ones of Alep which was favorable to the union of Syria with the Iraq Hachémite, of the democratization of Syria and the development of stronger bond with the Occident. The royal family of Iraq actively supported the party. Koudsi gains the elections of 1947 of 1954 and 1962 under the label of its party. He voted against the re-election of Kuwatli to the presidency, but Kuwatli supported by the national Party was re-elected.

The government of Kuwatli is reversed by a military Coup d'etat the March 29th 1949. The new president of Syria, Husni Al-Zaim, asked Koudsi to form a new government, but this one to refuse, because of the nondemocratic character of the accession to the capacity of president Zaim. Consequently, Zaim makes stop all the members of the Party of the people. Koudsi is released a little later and it is placed under house arrest in its house of Alep. It was very critical towards president Zaim, in particular when this one has wanted to close the borders of Syria with the Jordan and Iraq while threatening these two countries to invade them by showing them to be agents of the the United Kingdom to the the Middle East. The August 14th 1949, the general Sami Al-Hinnawi proceeds to a coup d'etat and makes carry out the Zaim general. Hinnawi which was close to PSNS and of the Party of the people was supported by Koudsi. After this coup d'etat, Koudsi became president of the constitutional Parliament, which wrote a new constitution for Syria. He becomes then Foreign Minister in the government of Hachem Al-Atassi. Koudsi led a dialog with prince Abdallah of Iraq, for the immediate union between the two countries. He formulated an agreement between the two countries for the birth of a State federal syro-Iraqi, preserving independent governments in Syria and in Iraq but or the affairs military, economic, social, cultural and political would be taken jointly between the two States. He proposed this plan with the Cairo with the Arab Ligue on January 1st 1951 for the union of all the Arab countries, following this model.

Prime Minister

The December 24th 1949, to start a dialog with the trade unions, president Hachem Al-Atassi requires of Koudsi to become its Prime Minister. But the soldiers put their veto at his nomination, which involved a resignation of its share, at the end of five days the soldiers removes their veto, and Koudsi returns to the capacity. The June 4th 1950, Koudsi to name a government minus extremist whom the precedent, it named the general Fawzi Selu as Minister for defense. Selu was the right-hand man of the general Chichakli, the strong man of Syria. Koudsi resigns of its station the March 27th 1951. October 1st, 1951, he was elected president of the Parliament. The November 28th 1951, the Chichakli general proceeds to a coup d'etat. It makes stop all the members of the Party of the people showing them to want to reverse the republican mode of Syria to replace it by Iraqi monarchy hachémite. It appoints Selu Prime Minister and releases Koudsi in January 1952, but it is placed under house arrest. Koudsi militates clandestinely against Chichakli, going until supporting a coup d'etat against him in February 1954.

United Arab Republic

In October 1954, Koudsi elected is appointed, and named president of the Parliament the October 14th 1954. It continues to work for the union of Iraq and of Syria but it is in vain. The same year the Syrians turn to the Egypt of the young president Gamal Abdel Nasser who had just arrived at the capacity. While Koudsi defended the role of Syria pro-British and pro-American, the majority of the Syrians were prosovietic. It militated so that Syria adheres to the Pacte of Baghdad, a Anglo-American treaty of defense aiming at containing the Communisme in the Middle East. The newspapers pro-Nasser show it to be a Hachémite agent. The October 12th 1957, it resigns of its station, and it is Akram Hourani, a figure of the Parti Baath which replaces it. In 1958, it votes against the union syro-Egyptian woman and when the two countries amalgamated for creates the United Arab Republic, it withdraws political life.

President of the republic

The September 28th 1961, the general Kouzbari proceeds to a coup d'etat and puts an end to the union syro-Egyptian woman. Koudsi which supported the coup d'etat, became president of the Parliament and deputy. It takes part in the presidential elections, and becomes the December 12th 1961 president of the republic. With the presidency, it tied relations with anti-Nasser governments, the Jordan, the Lebanon and the Saudi Arabia. It also approached to the the United Kingdom and the the United States. The hachémite family, which had supported her political career during her thirty last years had just been reversed by the general Kassem in 1958. Since, it did not have any more good relationships with the Heads of Iraqi States. To support the diplomatic relations between Syria and the United States, it names as Syrian ambassador with Washington a Syrian poet of Alep, Omar Abu Risheh.

It had an economic policy liberal, by privatisant the companies which had before was nationalized by Nasser. It drew aside all the Syrians pro-Nasser of the capacity, as well in the administration as in the army. It made written a new constitution for Syria and reconstituted the political parties which had were prohibited.

Its fall

It tried to marginalize the role of the soldiers in the political matters. With this intention, it names My' ruf Al-Dawalibi like Prime Minister. Dawalibi tried to decrease the influence of the army in all the businesses of State. The March 28th 1962, colonel Abd Al-Karim Al-Nehlawi proceeds to a coup d'etat. This one stopped Koudsi and Dawalibi by showing them to misuse to be able to them and to have to persecute the leaders of the Syrian army. The April 2nd, a consequence of State burst, carrying out the chief of Staff, Abd Al-Karim Zahr Aldine with the capacity. Karim supports Koudsi and the fact of releasing from prison, and it orders with the army of reconstituted the Parliament which had been dissolved. Koudsi refused to stop or to kill Nehlawi, it simply moved away it from Syria by naming it military attach3e in Indonesia.

In April 1962, it tried to alleviate the opposition by naming Prime Minister, Bachir Al-Azma, a nasserist which was Minister for health during the RAU. Azma named several members of the Parti Baath in the government. Koudsi and Azma sent to the Cairo their Foreign Minister, Adnan Al-Azhari to join again a dialog with Egypt de Nasser. But it is a failure, following that, Syria deposits a complaint with the Arab Ligue showing Nasser to want to destabilize Syria while interfering in its businesses interiors, they invited the army to rebel against Nasser. The March 8th 1963, the military committee of the Baath party launches a coup d'etat against Koudsi. The leaders of Baath wanted to reconstitute United Arab Republic and stopped for that president Koudsi. It was made banish of Syria the same year. He lived in exile in Europe then in Jordan, until the day or the president Hafez el-Assad invited it to return to Syria in 1971. It remained in Syria throughout the years 1970. He died in Jordan in 1998.

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