Journalist-writer, politician and statesman (b. 1928, Kars
- d. 16 October 2019, Istanbul). His father was a civil servant, so he received training in different
cities. He graduated from Istanbul Faculty of Law (1950). He began with his
journalism career in 1945, and during this time he also worked as a lawyer. In
1946, when the multiparty period began, he became a member of RPP. During the
Events of September 6-7.He was arrested as member of Cyprus is Turkish Society, was put
on trial and he was acquitted. He was impleaded by the Investigation Commission
with the claim of being the secretary of Revolution Committee.
He worked at different ranks in RPP. He was elected as
Istanbul deputy
in 1965. He took responsibility in “leftist tendency period” of the party with
Bülent Ecevit. He was the Parliamentary Group member and spokesperson of RPP.
He was the Tourism and Promotion Minister and government spokesperson in the
first government established by Ecevit.
Birgit started
to work as a journalist again after September 12 interventions and worked as
the editorial director at Dünya
newspaper and consultant at Hürriyet
newspaper. He wrote columns in Yeni
Günaydın newspaper, and then he became the editorial director and lead
writer in the same newspaper. Birgit was the Executive Board president of
Hürriyet Foundation and Aydın Doğan Foundation. He worked as a lecturer at the
communication faculties in Eskisehir Anadolu, Istanbul and Galatasaray universities. He
received the honorary doctorate from the Senate of Anadolu University. He was
the DSP Istanbul Fifth Region deputy candidate in 1991. He continued to write
columns in Cumhuriyet newspaper and at taught lectures at Istanbul Bilgi
University on Media
Communication Systems. He compiled part of his memories in a book named Evvel
Zaman İçinde (2005).
REFERENCE: Türkiye Ansiklopedisi 4 (1974), Emin Çölaşan /
Orhan Birgit’in Kitabı (Hürriyet, 24.12.2005), Sefa Kaplan / Fahri Korutürk
Nasıl Cumhurbaşkanı Seçildi (Hürriyet, 25.12. 2005), Usta gazeteci Orhan Birgit
vefat etti (hürriyet.com.tr, 16 Ekim 2019), Orhan Birgit ve Ali Topuz son
yolculuklarına uğurlandı (aa.com.tr, cnnturk.com,17.10.2019), Ali Topuz ve
Orhan Birgit defnedildi
(gazeteduvar.com.tr, 17.10.2019).