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| Teoman Aktan, political scientist |
Over the past week, Turkish language rights activists in various neighborhoods of Iranian Azerbaijan’s cities have distributed Turkish books to children in commemoration of International Mother Language Day.
Speaking to the Voice of America, political scientist and activist Teoman Aktan argues that “Turkish is the language of alternative narratives against the dominant narratives and colonial propaganda of the ruling group in Iran.”
He views the prohibition of native languages in Iran as a manifestation of cultural hegemony:
“The ban on mother tongues should be seen as a reflection of power relations and cultural hegemony in Iran. Our defense of the status and position of Turkish is primarily a challenge to this colonial order.”
The political scientist emphasizes that the issue of language in Iranian Azerbaijan is not merely a cultural right.
He states, “Turkish should be the language and necessity of the cultural resistance movement that we need. Therefore, it must be presented as an urgent need, a historical necessity. In the current situation in Iran, this language is the language of resistance literature against cultural hegemony, colonial mentality, the colonial education system, as well as the systematic brainwashing and indoctrination imposed by the system.”
Commenting on how the national movement in Iranian Azerbaijan approaches the language issue, Teoman Aktan asserts that “it is not right to confine this issue solely to the cultural domain.”
According to him, “In reality, Turkish is the language of alternative narratives against the dominant narratives and colonial propaganda of the ruling group in Iran. It constitutes the essence and main objective of an alternative struggle. Therefore, it is more than just a cultural right; it is a field of struggle. It is a fight for equal status. In other words, the language issue in Iran’s current political context is actually a demand for status, a call for equal opportunities. Hence, it is not right to confine this matter solely to the cultural domain.”
Link to the original text in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Teoman Aktan: İranda türkcə hakim rəvayətlərə qarşı alternativ rəvayətlərin dilidir