By Alirza Quluncu, Voice of America, February 4, 2024
 |
| Mehdi Neimi |
Political activist and commentator Mehdi Neimi, in an interview with Voice of America, states that the Iranian government's censorship policies target not only the content of Turkish publications but also the language used in these works. He emphasizes that state institutions aim to create a "distorted language."
He explains, "There are times when they step back a little, and that’s thanks to the efforts of our people, especially our activists. Otherwise, government institutions do not willingly allow Turkish books and magazines to be published. In some cases, they interfere so much with a written work that they cut off its essence, leaving behind a distorted version."
Recently, a copy of a document showing an example of censorship applied to Turkish books in Iran was shared on social media. According to the document, a cultural ministry official demanded that the author of the book A Bird Among Birds, prepared for publication in Iranian Azerbaijan, remove or change certain words. The ministry’s expert required the author's name to be written formally (in accordance with Persian linguistic rules) and the language to be referred to as "Azerbaijani" or "Azari." The expert also argued that words and expressions such as ada (island), orman (forest), eski çağlar (ancient times), duygu (emotion), tarla (field), and könül (soul) were from "Istanbul Turkish" and demanded their replacement.
According to Mehdi Neimi, "They pay great attention to the content of the works to ensure there is no idea, thought, or anything conducive to awakening in the nation-building process. Then they focus on the form, targeting words and terminology. They do not want original Turkish words; instead, they want what they call 'Azari.' That is their term. We do not agree with it. Our people know their language as Turkish."
Referring to the words mentioned in the censored document shared on social media, he highlights that these words are used in Iranian Azerbaijan and other regions of Iran where Turks and Turkmens live.
"Some words are in use. Sometimes we find that a word used to be common among us, but because we did not study Turkish in school or university, we forgot it and replaced it with another term. These words are still used in various parts of Iran or were used in the past. Let’s say a word wasn’t ours and came from Turkey—there’s nothing abnormal about that. In their view, they are purging these words to ensure they are not Turkish, to prevent their positive impact on awakening, and to block their positive influence on people's vocabulary. They want to create a distorted language, and this is the hardship our writers and intellectuals endure," Mehdi Neimi concludes.
Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Mehdi Nəimi: İran dövləti türkcə əsərlərə senzura tətbiq edərək eybəcər bir dil ortaya çıxarmaq istəyir