In Iranian Azerbaijan and other regions with Turkish-speaking populations, various events and campaigns were organized to mark February 21, International Mother Language Day. In addition to these events, thousands of university students have demanded the official recognition of the Turkish language from the government.
On February 18, a poetry and music ceremony was held in Tabriz to commemorate the day. According to news and footage broadcast on Günaz TV and social media, children recited poems in Turkish, and the music group led by Hasan Demirci performed the "Youth March."
Small events were also reported to have taken place in several cities in West Azerbaijan, including the provincial capital, Urmia.
According to online news portals reporting on the southern regions, authorities did not allow large-scale events to be held for International Mother Language Day this year either.
Social media users joined the campaigns for Mother Language Day by using hashtags such as #AnaDili #TürkDiliResmiOlsun #HanıDilim #MotherLanguageDay in Turkish, Persian, and English.
In recent years, the most frequently voiced demand was for education in Turkish, but this year, social media campaigns and letters from 4,000 students from universities in Urmia, Tabriz, Maragheh, and Zanjan primarily called for the "official recognition of Turkish."
Student activist Milad Balesin stated in an interview with Voice of America that the letter addressed to the president was signed not only by students from Azerbaijani universities but also by Turkish students from other regions, particularly from the Qashqai ethnic group. He reported that 4,085 students signed the letter.
After UNESCO declared February 21 as International Mother Language Day in 1999, Turks in Iranian Azerbaijan and in cities like Tehran began organizing events to celebrate the day.
Over the past decade, hundreds of Turkish activists participating in International Mother Language Day events in Iranian Azerbaijan and Tehran have been monitored and faced imprisonment.
Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
İranda türklər Dünya Ana Dili Gününü qeyd edir