The panel titled "Hasan Rıza Pasha, the Hero of Iskodra, on the 111th Anniversary of his Martyrdom" was held at the Central Library Cemil Meriç Hall on February 29, 2024.
Governor Meftun Dallı, Rector Prof. Dr. Ahmet Hamdi Topal, Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Mehmet Atalan, academicians, students, and representatives of public institutions and organizations attended the panel.
Within the framework of the program prepared on the 111th anniversary of the martyrdom of Hasan Rıza Pasha, the commander of Iskodra, who defended Iskodra for 6 months during the Balkan Wars, a panel on "Hasan Rıza Pasha, the Hero of Iskodra in the 111th Year of His Martyrdom" was organized.
While the panel started with a moment of silence and the National Anthem, the opening speech of the panel was made by Prof. Dr. Selahattin Kaymakçı from the Faculty of Education. In his speech, Prof. Dr. Kaymakçı stated that every individual living in Turkey is obliged to search for, find, know, and teach their own values, and that they are trying to find the answer to the question of how to raise young people who are at peace with their history, civilization, and culture.
The program was moderated by Prof. Dr. Mehmet Serhat Yılmaz, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. In his speech, Prof. Dr. Yılmaz stated that the heroism shown by the Turkish soldiers in the defense of Iskodra and its fortresses during the Balkan Wars was commendable and shared brief information about Hasan Rıza Pasha, who played an important role in this defense. In addition, Yılmaz thanked all academicians and students who contributed to the panel for their participation.
"Hasan Riza Pasha defended Iskodra for the cause he believed in and died for it"
After the opening speech of the panel, Educator-Writer Efendi Barutçu took the floor. Barutçu made a presentation on hero, heroism and heroes in the panel. In his speech, Barutçu emphasized that heroes are not afraid of death, on the contrary, they go to death without avoiding it. Stating that heroism is also an important element in religious terms, Barutçu explained the importance of the concept of heroism with hadiths. Stating that heroes live for the cause they believe in, Barutçu said that Hasan Rıza Pasha also believed in this cause and defended Iskodra and died for it. Barutçu said that the actions of Hasan Rıza Pasha, who achieved significant success in Iskodra, shed light on the future and emphasized that the fate of nations that do not take the successes of the past as an example and move away from morality and self will not be good. Barutçu suggested that the Kastamonu provincial administration should also take initiatives to establish a cultural and historical brotherhood with the city of Iskodra.
"Your heroism in history will shed light on the future"
Prof. Dr. Şerif Demir, Head of the Department of History, took the floor after Prof. Barutçu and gave historical information about the Balkan Wars, Iskodra and Hasan Rıza Pasha. In his speech, Prof. Dr. Demir said that the problems caused by the countries that wanted to take advantage of the weakness of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkan Wars accelerated the process of the Ottoman Empire's loss of territory and stated that the soldiers in the Balkan Wars did their duties in the best way. Prof. Dr. Demir underlined that the heroism in history will shed light on the future by saying, "History should be considered not as a repetition of events, but perhaps as the most important source of reference that we will need to better understand the future in order to build the future."
History Department Faculty Member Prof. Dr. Ercan Çelebi shared the presentation titled Hasan Rıza Pasha's life story with the audience. In his speech, Prof. Dr. Çelebi stated that there are different opinions about Hasan Rıza Pasha's birthplace being Albania, Baghdad and Kastamonu and told the audience about Hasan Rıza Pasha's successes in his career. Prof. Dr. Çelebi said that Hasan Rıza Pasha completed his education in Istanbul and Bursa, received military training in Berlin and became a successful soldier by serving in various places in the Ottoman lands. Prof. Dr. Çelebi mentioned that there are documents belonging to Hasan Rıza Pasha, a successful soldier, and underlined that a large-scale systematic study of these documents should be carried out.
At the end of the panel, a certificate of appreciation was presented to the participants who participated as speakers.
