Yashar Gulshen - July 6, 2015
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| Akbar Alami |
In religious narratives, there are accounts of people who created idols from wood and stone. When they sought miracles from them and became disappointed, they blamed the idols. The story of hope that some people pinned on Akbar Alami and the frustration that has emerged in recent days, following his reactions to the BBC's "Pargar" program and the discussion of the people's demands in Azerbaijan, closely resembles the narrative of blaming the wooden idols.
The hope placed in Akbar Alami dates back to the days of the May 2006 uprising, following the insult by the Iran newspaper. Although his reaction at that time was limited to reciting a popular poem, “O Tehranis” and urging officials to show moderation toward the protesters and address the demands of the people to preserve the unity of Iran, such statements seemed unprecedented in the parliament of the Iranian government at that time. The reason why people had different perceptions about Akbar Alami’s intentions might have been the comparison of his performance with that of other Azerbaijani representatives in parliament, who were more eager to limit the national rights of the people they claimed to represent. Ultimately, Akbar Alami's actions appeared more moderate in a society where the one-eyed person is considered a king. However, his actions now, especially with his probable involvement in the upcoming elections, suggest that the flicker of insight that once existed in him is now aimed at blinding others.
In his recent statements, including those on his various Facebook pages, Alami’s political stance reveals a distorted reflection of reality and provides a clear view of his actual perspective on the national demands of the Turks.
Akbar Alami’s note titled "The Unification of the Two Azerbaijans and the Surrounding Considerations!?" seems to express his opposition to the unification of Southern and Northern Azerbaijan. After some introductory remarks, he writes:
"While emphasizing the existence of certain cultural and economic discrimination and the need to respect the legal and legitimate demands of the majority of the people of Azerbaijan, which I have often pointed out, I must also address the very small group that drums for separatism and the joining of Iranian Azerbaijan to the Republic of Azerbaijan. They are oblivious to the fact that they are sawing off the branch they are sitting on. Which sound mind would accept that Azerbaijanis should give up their share in a territory of over 1,648,000 square kilometers with all its power, wealth, natural resources, and oil reserves, and join a country of 86,600 square kilometers, only to become part of a country with a total area of 210,000 square kilometers, which would account for about 12.7% of the current territory!"
Before addressing Alami’s writing, it is important to clarify that my discussion here is not about agreeing or disagreeing with the "unification of the two Azerbaijans," as this is not the current issue for national activists. Even in the "Pargar" program, although federalism and independence were discussed, the "unification of the two Azerbaijans" was not mentioned. My focus here is solely on examining Akbar Alami’s views on the national rights of the Turks and highlighting his contradictory statements in justifying the absence of systemic discrimination in Iran. These two issues are important because they reveal the true face and the essence of the pan-Iranist ideology of someone who was long respected and, at times, seen as a source of hope for many Turks.
In his first note, Akbar Alami refers to those who "beat the drum for separatism and the joining of Iranian Azerbaijan to the Republic of Azerbaijan" as a small group and considers it illogical for people to give up their share in Iran and join a smaller country. The two key points in this quote are the emphasis on the territorial size to determine the quality of life for the people and the assumption of their "share."
Larger Country, Better Life!
Even if we overlook Akbar Alami’s somewhat insincere use of the negative term "separatism" in contrast to the specific legal term "independence," and even if we refrain from addressing the fallacy where he equates the concept of independence or national sovereignty with joining the Republic of Azerbaijan, Alami's emphasis on comparing the size of the two territories and drawing economic, political, and social conclusions from this comparison is so shallow, trivial, and unreliable that it would astonish even a neutral observer with its superficiality. If national demands were to be measured by comparing the land areas of neighboring or allied countries, then such an argument might be taken seriously only if the two countries being compared shared similar characteristics and the quality of life in the two territories was also on a similar level. When a large portion of one country's land consists of deserts, arid lands, and uninhabited plains, a superficial comparison of the total size of the two countries is a fallacy. More importantly, ignoring the different cultural, political, social, and economic conditions in the two countries makes this comparison completely invalid. The people of large, oil-rich countries like Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and, of course, Iran, do not enjoy a better standard of living than the people of smaller countries such as Switzerland, Greece, and Azerbaijan. In fact, they are not even comparable.
In addition to this simplistic and trivial line of reasoning for opposing the resolution of the Turks' position in relation to Iran, the key issue in this comparison is the assumption that all inhabitants of Iran receive their "share" of the resources, implying that there is no systematic discrimination in Azerbaijan's access to Iran's resources and that Azerbaijan receives its fair share of Iran's national resources based on its population and needs. Aside from the statistics and tangible facts that show the higher economic growth in the Farsi-speaking regions compared to other areas, the interesting point is that Akbar Alami, who bases his territorial comparison on the assumption of equal shares, acknowledges the fallacy of his own hypothesis amidst his contradictory statements.
Akbar Alami’s Share of the Stock!
Alami’s second note is essentially an attempt to justify this "share." He denies the existence of “systematic” political, economic, and cultural discrimination in Iran in favor of the Fars, and if he acknowledges any discrimination, he firstly does not consider it so severe as to justify a desire to break away from a large country like Iran, and secondly, he blames the narrow-mindedness of the Turks themselves. In Alami’s note, although there are general references to the existence of discrimination, and even examples are provided such as “everything is summarized in the Fars language, culture, and literature, while for others, who constitute the majority of this land, no rights are recognized,” he clarifies that these issues are “the result of the extreme, selfish, authoritarian, and expansionist behaviors of some forces.” He also states that “there is no doubt that some of the executive officials and members of parliament have negative sensitivities and narrow-mindedness toward Azerbaijan and the Turks, but their number is not enough to impose their will on the majority, unless the representatives of the people of Azerbaijan are passive and ineffectual. Moreover, this issue is not exclusive to Azerbaijan.”
When Akbar Alami speaks about the cultural rights demands of the people, he confines them to the narrow scope of teaching literature. According to him, “the most important demand of the people of Azerbaijan and the Iranian ethnic groups is the implementation of the abandoned and unimplemented Articles 15, 19, 20, and also Article 156 of the Constitution, which stipulates the right of the nation to determine its own destiny.” We know that Article 15 and the generality of the Iranian Constitution only grant official status to the Persian language and provide the freedom to “teach literature” for other national languages.
In response to objections about the unequal distribution of state budgets, Alami explicitly states, “The claim that all of Iran’s wealth is flowing to Isfahan, Shiraz, Kerman, and Yazd is a baseless and false accusation. Because the distribution of budgets and the share of developmental and current expenditures for each province is done within the framework of annual budgets approved by the representatives of the people in parliament.” To emphasize this, he adds, “At least while I was in the 6th and 7th parliaments, we never allowed the budget allocation for Azerbaijan to be less than other areas.” He repeats this claim elsewhere in his note, stating, “I was a member of parliament for at least 8 years, and during that time, we never allowed the share of Isfahan’s developmental and current budgets to be distributed unfairly. In fact, sometimes the share of Azerbaijan was higher than that of Isfahan.” To justify the economic development of Isfahan, which has come at the expense of underdeveloped non-Persian areas, he mentions “the presence of two large steel factories, Mobarakeh and Isfahan Steel,” arguing that this is not related to discrimination. However, Akbar Alami does not explain how the establishment of such massive industries and the creation of employment opportunities in Fars areas is consistent with his claimed share. Of course, in an attempt to cover up, and following the usual stereotype, he also mentions the tourist attractions of Isfahan and concludes that “the lower level of jealousy and narrow-mindedness among the people and officials of Isfahan” is another factor in the region's economic growth, as they say, "the people get what they deserve!"
Regarding Kerman and Yazd, Akbar Alami preemptively acknowledges the disregard for their share but attributes it to “the power rents of two presidents,” namely Rafsanjani and Khatami, which led to “Kermani and Yazdi individuals benefiting from the power rents of these two presidents and investing and attracting capital in their regions.” Interestingly, while acknowledging the use of power rents in these areas, he tries to reduce the responsibility of the two rent-seeking and rent-receiving presidents by adding that “the goals and policies of the Islamic Republic should be focused on removing poverty, and in this context, attention to these two provinces—Yazd and Kerman—is inevitable.”
Akbar Alami’s justification for the lack of attention to the deprived regions of Azerbaijan is even more interesting than his justification for the attention given to Fars regions. He himself admits, “Many parts of Azerbaijan are considered relatively deprived areas, and therefore must be included in poverty alleviation policies,” but he does not attribute the failure to address poverty in these regions to the anti-Turkish and anti-Azerbaijani political system. On the contrary, he places the blame on “the extreme actions and separatist behaviors of a minority,” which have led to a security-oriented view, and also on “the same individuals who are in power in the region and are, in fact, Turks.” This reasoning by Akbar Alami is of the type that could be applied more generally. For example, in the context of the systematic restrictions imposed on women, one could also blame “the extreme actions and behaviors” of women’s rights activists seeking equal rights, while not ignoring those women who are tasked with enforcing the laws on the streets, who happen to be women themselves!
Our Duties According to Akbar Alami!
Mr. Akbar Alami, in addition to his justifications, is not neglectful of offering guidance, and perhaps these pieces of advice unveil the mystery behind his current activism and his pan-Iranian rhetoric. This is because pan-Iranism is the only commodity in the Iranian political market that has buyers across all political factions.
When one of his followers asks him on his page, "Mr. Alami, you wrote that the representatives of the people in parliament... Are they really representatives of the people?" He clearly specifies his electoral goals in his response: "Dear friend, these people didn’t fall from the sky; they were elected by the people, to some extent. It is obvious that when people don’t appreciate what they have, don’t support and protect their real representatives, and, for various reasons, seek to undermine and weaken them, these individuals will find their way into the parliament, and they are the ones who deserve it." In another statement, he said, "Due to my love for my homeland, dear Azerbaijan, and my professional position, I am more familiar with the problems of Azerbaijan and the demands of the people of this region than you are, and for this reason, I have defended the rights of my people more than any other official you may know in Iran. And, in fact, I have not been immune to insults and the repercussions of false labels like separatism."
Thus, the fate of the Turks for the upcoming elections is clear: First and foremost, they must appreciate their possessions, with Mr. Akbar Alami at the forefront, support and protect him, never speak contrary to his wishes, and continue to recognize him as the benefactor of the people of Azerbaijan. They must take pride in being part of the large Iran, whose territory is far larger than Azerbaijan's, and prevent “some extreme actions and separatist behaviors of a minority,” who make unfounded claims and create a security atmosphere. Instead, they should ensure that people like Akbar Alami are elected to the Iranian parliament so that, like the eight years when he and his reformist colleagues were in the parliament and government, the rights of the Turks and Azerbaijan will be fully granted. Additionally, with this election, the people of Northern Azerbaijan may hope that, as Mr. Alami himself stated: “If one day the government and people of Iran, especially the patriotic and nationalistic people of Azerbaijan, as well as the government and people of the Republic of Azerbaijan, wish for reunification between the two, we will all welcome it. However, it is obvious that in this case, the smaller and separated unit must join the larger and main one and become part of a great and powerful country with an area of 1,648,000 square kilometers, sharing in the history, geography, power, glory, resources, and natural wealth of this great nation."
Akbar Alami's view on the reunification of the Republic of Azerbaijan with Iran is honestly so extreme that it deserves to be published as an editorial on the "Azariha" website. However, for emphasis, it would be better to refer to it as "Northern Iran" instead of the "Republic of Azerbaijan."
Original Text in Farsi