"The Sentence Against Abbas Lisani Is a Sentence Against the Entire Movement"

Alirza Quluncu, Voice of America, November 7, 2019

Mehsa Mehdili

Mahsa Mehdili considers the 15-year prison sentence and two-year exile given to Abbas Lisani, one of the leaders of the national movement in Iranian Azerbaijan, as a verdict against the entire movement and all national activists.

Speaking to Voice of America, the political analyst stated, "Seventeen years for a cultural activist and for our movement is a very serious sanction. It is a very harsh punishment. We all must stand against this. We should not see this as just a sentence against Abbas Bey but as a verdict issued against our entire national movement and all our activists."

Abbas Lisani’s prison sentence was increased from 8 to 15 years by the Court of Appeals. His lawyer, Mohammadreza Faqihi, who was preparing to appeal the case to Iran’s Supreme Court, was arrested on October 20. Although he was later released, reports indicate that he was subjected to pressure and threats from security forces for defending Lisani.

According to Mahsa Mehdili, "The arrest of a lawyer clearly shows how much the judiciary and legal system serve the ruling government and coercion. It demonstrates that the court is not an institution of justice. If people cannot trust the judiciary, if they cannot defend themselves, and if lawyers are not even allowed to defend their clients, then what we have is nothing but a system of sheer brutality, terror, and oppression."

Mehdili highlights Abbas Lisani’s influence in the South Azerbaijan national movement and his ability to mobilize people, adding, "When we look at both Abbas Bey’s struggle methods and his statements, we see that the core principle of his struggle is to act in a cultural and peaceful manner."

She believes that "by subjecting even someone who operates peacefully to such severe punishments and suffering, the authorities are inevitably trying to push the national movement toward radicalization."

Mahsa Mehdili also shared her views with Voice of America on the recent pressures faced by publishers in Iranian Azerbaijan and Tehran who publish books in Turkish:

"The main issue for the regime is that these books are in Turkish. The content could be, for instance, a completely religious book. It could even be praising them. But simply because it is in Turkish, they oppose it."

She adds, "Instead of softening its stance and listening to the demands, the Iranian government has opened a new front. Soon, they might even ban the Turkish language inside homes. We have already seen the ‘Persian Proficiency Test’ initiative. They are developing projects aimed at erasing the Turkish language in Azerbaijan and even in Turkish households."

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Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
"Abbas Lisaniyə verilən cəza bütün hərəkata verilən cəzadır"