Mohsen Kakarash – Radio Zamaneh – February 21, 2014
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| On the eve of International Mother Language Day, at least 60 Azerbaijani Turk activists and citizens were arrested in the city of Ahar. |
Dozens of Azerbaijani civil activists were arrested by security forces on February 20 in the city of Ahar.
They had gathered to mark International Mother Language Day.
Salah Kamrani, a lawyer, told Zamaneh: “So far, the names of 60 of these activists have been identified, and families’ efforts to follow up on their cases have been unsuccessful.”
The lawyer added: “The number of detainees is close to one hundred, and they are being held at Police Station No. 12 in Ahar.”
These civil activists had gathered at the home of Akbar Abolzadeh, one of Ahar's local activists.
Beatings During Arrest
Kamrani said security forces surrounded the house about an hour before the arrests took place. It appears they were waiting for a court order to detain the participants of the mother language ceremony.
During the arrests, two individuals were reportedly beaten by security forces.
According to Kamrani, some families who went to Police Station No. 12 to inquire about their loved ones were not allowed to enter the station.
The detainees had come to Ahar from various Turkish-speaking cities. Some of them, such as Abbas Lesani, Rouzbeh Sa'adati, Meysam Azadi, and Fardin Moradpour, have a history of arrest and imprisonment.
"The State Is Violating the Law"
Kamrani stated that similar gatherings had been held in Ahar over the past two years without government interference.
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| Salah Kamrani: Many Azerbaijani civil activists have been arrested and sentenced to prison in recent years for pursuing the issue of mother tongue rights. |
He emphasized that the demands of Azerbaijani activists are based on existing national laws and international human rights standards that affirm the right to mother tongue education.
According to him, these gatherings are usually held to explore ways to achieve the right to use and be educated in one’s mother tongue.
He pointed to the history of such ceremonies in Turkish-speaking cities in Iran and said that during the reformist period, similar events were held legally in cities like Tabriz, including at universities. However, under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, no permits were issued, forcing activists to meet in private homes. “If the government does not permit such events, it is the government that is violating the law,” he added. “Clearly, no permit was issued this year either, which is why the event was held at a private residence.”
Turkish Language Prohibited
Kamrani noted that many Azerbaijani civil activists have been arrested and sentenced to prison in recent years simply for advocating mother tongue rights.
As an attorney for several such individuals, he said some were arrested merely for writing poetry or publishing calendars in Turkish. They were charged in court with offenses like “acting against national security” and “propaganda against the regime.”
He cited the cases of Ebrahim Nouri and Gholamreza Amani, who were arrested in past years for writing poems and attempting to organize Mother Language Day events. According to Kamrani, Gholamreza Amani died in a “suspicious car accident” alongside his brother several years ago.
Ongoing Mother Language Issue
The arrests come at a time when the issue of mother tongue education has received more attention under President Hassan Rouhani’s administration than in previous ones.
During his election campaign on June 3, 2013, Rouhani released a policy statement emphasizing the official recognition and teaching of the mother tongues of Iranians (Kurdish, Azerbaijani, Arabic, etc.) in schools and universities.
He even promised the people of Tabriz that he would establish an “Academy of the Azerbaijani Language and Literature.” However, the academy has not yet been established.
Ali-Asghar Fani, the interim Minister of Education, had promised in October that various languages in Iran would be taught in schools as mother tongues.
He announced the formation of a committee to examine the issue and said a think tank had also been activated, with a group of people invited to work on a comprehensive plan.
However, his remarks drew criticism from members of the Persian Language and Literature Academy.
Gholam-Ali Haddad Adel, head of the Academy, insisted that the standard of education in Iran must be the Persian language. He said: “Of course, there are other languages, and their status is known, but the language that should be taught is Persian.”
Fathollah Mojtaba’i, another Academy member, claimed that the mother tongue education debate is a “foreign import.” He said: “I’m certain this idea came to Iran from abroad. This was experimented with by the British in India, and today it is Britain and our northern neighbors who want to bring this issue to Iran.”
These positions drew widespread criticism from some parliamentarians and minority rights activists inside and outside the country.
Eventually, the Persian Language and Literature Academy softened its stance.
Bahā’oddin Khorramshāhi said he was not opposed to teaching mother tongues, but opposed teaching in them.
Mirjalaleddin Kazzazi, a well-known university professor and Persian literature scholar, stated: “Teaching mother tongues alongside the national common language in no way presents a conflict that would require us to choose one and abandon the other. But if a child does not learn their mother tongue from their mother and at home, they won’t be able to properly learn it later in school or university either.”
He also added: “Local dialects and languages, just like Persian, are valuable and precious. We should preserve them by all means possible. Promoting one does not mean neglecting the other.”
Legal and International Protections
The right to mother tongue education is emphasized in numerous international human rights documents, such as the Charter of Mother Tongue, the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights, paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 4 of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, Article 30 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, among others.
Article 15 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran also affirms the right to be educated in one’s mother tongue alongside Persian in schools.
In 2000, UNESCO declared February 21 as International Mother Language Day.
Here is the link to the original article in Persian:
بازداشت دهها نفر در اهر در آستانه روز جهانی زبان مادری
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