Xhafer Sylejmani

Xhafer Sylejmani Dr
Mayor of Tetovo under the Kingdom of Albania
In office May 1941 – 8 September 1943
Succeeded by	Shaip Kamberi
Kingdom of Yugoslavia Senator from Vardar Banovina
In office 3 January 1932 – 1941
Succeeded by	Position Dissolved
Personal details
Born	(1878-03-14)14 March 1878 Sevran, Skrapar, Janina vilayet, Ottoman Empire
Died	17 November 1953(1953-11-17) (aged 75) Tetovo, SFR Yugoslavia (Modern North Macedonia)
Nationality	Albanian
Alma mater	Istanbul University Sorbonne University
Occupation	Medical Doctor Politician

Xhafer Sylejmani was an Albanian doctor and the mayor of Tetovo under the Italian protectorate of Albania.

Early life and education

Sylejmani was born in the village of Sevran in Skrapar. After completing high school in Salonika, Sylejmani studied medical science at Istanbul University. Being distinguished for high grades among his cohort in Istanbul, Sylejmani was sent to Paris for further education, where he graduated from Sorbonne University in 1905.

Sylejmani started his 2-year intership in Janina (Present day Ioannina), where he met his future wife, Safija. After completing his internship, he moved and worked for some time as a doctor in Gostivar. In 1908 and until the end of his life, he would settle with his family in Tetovo. The exact reasons for his move to Tetovo are unknown, but according to oral sources, he chose to practise in Tetovo because of the favourable climate and natural resources (clean air and abundant water) which were suitable for healing diseases.

In the following years, during challenging periods such as the first world war (1914 - 1918) and the typhus epidemic, Sylejmani was put at the service of the local population. This humanitarian commitment for which he was later decorated with high orders from the Red Cross and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. In 1916, during the First World War, Sylejmani was taken prisoner of war by the occupiers and exiled to Bulgaria. At the end of the war, he began to practice his profession as a doctor again, setting up his practise near the Gymnasium of Tetovo. Sylejmani was also involved in many charitable associations such as Merhameti and Gajreti.

During the 1920s, his activity took on a new dimension. In 1922, he appears as one of the co-founders and investors of two large enterprises in Tetovo, namely the Industrial Commercial Bank of Tetovo (Тетовско Трговачко Индустријска Банка А. Д. - Тетово), and the Tetovo Industrial Joint Stock Association (Тетовско Индустријско Акционарско Друштво (ТИАД)). The significance of these enterprises represent the first industrialization initiatives in the region. Thus, the Tetova Industrial Joint Stock Company built the first hydroelectric plant in Southern Yugoslavia, which it puts into use in November 1926.

Political career

In 1926, Sylejmani's eldest son, Reshat, died at the age of 16, spurring Sylejmani to pursue a political career.

In 1927, he was elected as a Member of Parliament in Belgrade, a position he held until 1931. A year later, on January 3, 1932, he was appointed Senator of the First Senate of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, as a representative of the Vardar Banovina, a position he held until 1941.

During this period, he opposed in the senate, the Yugoslav colonization of Kosovo and the agrarian reform, which disfavoured the Albanians of Yugoslavia. In the newspaper Pravda Sylejmani spoke about the implementation of the agrarian reform at the detriment of the Albanians, whose land are taken without compensation.

Kingdom of Albania

In 1941, the Axis forces occupied Yugoslavia and Tetovo came under the influence of the Kingdom of Albania. In May 1941, he was appointed as the mayor of Tetovo, a position he held until September 8, 1943. During his tenure, he opened Albanian language schools and attracted teachers from Elbasan and Tirana. A key role in these efforts is played by the Minister of Education Ernest Koliqi, who sent over 200 teachers to the "liberated lands". Sylejmani conveys the thanks of the local population for the implementation of summer courses of the Albanian language, and requests the opening of regular schools.

in July 1943, Sylejmani organized a grand reception on the occasion of the visit of the heads of the Albanian state and the King's Viceroy, General Alberto Pariani, to Tetovo. In this visit, Pariani was accompanied by the Prime Minister of Albania, Mustafa Kruja, Minister of World Affairs, Iljaz Agushi, Minister of Education, Ernest Koliqi, and others.

Later life and death

After the end of the Second World War, Sylejmani was sentenced to 6 years in Idrizovo, a political prison. He was released after 4 years in prison, in 1950 at the age of 72 due to poor health. He died in 1953, at the age of 75.

Legacy

With his successful work as a doctor, Xhafer Sylejmani had the image of a contemporary intellectual and a reliable person in Tetovo. Thus, he participated in many of the conflicts in society, and in some cases citizens entrust him with the custody of inheritance (property and children) in case of death.

Under the Ministry of Culture in North Macedonia, Xhafer Sylemani's place of residence is heritage listed. The unique styled Ottoman vila serves as a study object for students in the faculties of architecture.