Bilge Kagan
19.12.06, 23:30
“Claws of the Persian chauvinism reach many places in the world”: interview with Jahandar Bayoglu
(http://www.regnum.ru/news/688913.html)
Jahandar Bayoglu is Chairman of the Committee of National Movement of Southern Azerbaijan. The Committee of National Movement of Southern Azerbaijan is one of the organizations protecting the rights of the Azeri population of Iran. According to various sources, there are from 25 million to 35 million of Azeris in Iran, i.e. 1/3 of the total population. They live in the northern part of Iran and the capital of that country. When saying “Azerbaijan” the leader of the movement means the territory of both the AzerbaijaniRepublic and the part of Iran with prevailing Azeri population. According to the tradition existing in some Asian countries, Bayoglu calls ethnic Azeris — “Azeri Turks.”
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Mr. Bayoglu, the leader of the Azeri opposition Party of National Independence of Azerbaijan (PNIA) Etibar Mamedov has said in a press-conference that on September 12 he will hold an international forum on the rights of ethnic Azeris in Iran. Will any foreign guests attend the forum?
Yes, besides the leaders of political parties and NGOs of the Azerbaijani Republic, attending the forum will be the leaders of a number of organizations fighting for the rights of Azeri Turks in Iran, representatives of the intelligentsia and public figures.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): And who will cover their transport and accommodation expenses – the organizers or the guests themselves?
The forum is organized by the PNIA leader, they are forming an organizational committee, which will deal with such problems.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Will the Baku forum contribute to the resolution of, at least, part of the Iranian Azeris’ problems. Do you expect that after the forum the Iranian authorities will open Azeri schools and universities and will lift or reduce their censorship on the Azeri media?
Our committee welcomes the very fact of the conduct of such a representative international forum. Now that the national movement of Turks in the south of Azerbaijan is rising – despite repressions by the Iranian authorities – it is especially important that our problems be discussed by our brothers from the north as well as by Azeris from Europe and the US. We have long needed such a forum, and I am happy that it will be held, at last. I think the forum will formulate and adopt the key principles uniting all political and public organizations of Southern Azerbaijan. It is for them to fight the way for national-cultural achievements. The history shows that under all rules the Persian chauvinism tries to suppress the rights and freedoms of other Muslim nations living in that country. Those chauvinists are especially afraid lest the Azeri Turks – who revived the Iranian statehood several centuries ago – might wake up as a nation.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Won’t the organizers (and not only they) of the Baku forum face protests on the part of Iran – through their FM or Embassy in Azerbaijan?
Certainly, the claws of the Persian chauvinism – irrespective of who is in power at the moment – reach many places in the world. Mullocratia is trying to assimilate the Azeri Turks of Iran by prioritizing religion and depersonalizing nations. They say that there is one single Iranian people, but this is not true. The so-called Iranian dissident-democrats scattered all over the US and Europe – should they come back into power – are not going to respect the right of the Azeri Turks either. The Pan-Iranian chauvinism is above time, space and ideology.
That’s why it is natural that the Turks of both Northern and Southern Azerbaijan should not pay attention to the protests of the Iranian regime. I think that even despite his former anti-Azeri statements, the organizers should invite to the forum (and they will probably do) Ambassador of Iran to Azerbaijan Afshar Suleymani (http://www.google.com/custom?domains=www.regnum.ru&q=Suleymani+&sitesearch=www.regnum.ru&client=pub-1466744838047082&forid=1&ie=ISO-8859-1&oe=ISO-8859-1&cof=GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:3366 99;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FF FFFF;LBGC:3) – not as an official serving the Iranian chauvinist regime, but as an Azeri Turk. Let him sit and listen. Perhaps, this will free his conscience from the deeply ingrained Pan-Iranian chauvinism.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): What can you say about the agenda of the forum?
I think it will reflect the above-mentioned problems and will be aimed at developing key provisions uniting all political and public organizations of Southern Azerbaijan. The specific agenda will be adopted by majority on the proposals of the organizers and participants.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): The initiator of the Baku forum Etibar Mamedov says that the international organizations have recognized as prisoners of conscience 11 people arrested and imprisoned in Iran because of “the national-liberation movement” that burst up in May 2006. However, he says that there is also a list of 200 people who are also in prison because of the movement. As a man having contacts with different regions of Iran, you may have more specific information…
When in May 2006 hundreds of thousands of Azeri Turks went into the streets and squares to protect their defamed name and rights, the panicking regime threw in jail as many as 11,000 most active protesters. Almost 5,000 of them are still in jail. I have a list with names and other data of 700 arrestees, while the international human rights organizations have for some unknown reasons received a list of 200 people.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Why, despite your expectations, haven’t the almost 8 million Azeri residents of Tehran supported the protest action? And how can you explain this year’s failure of the annual symbolic march of Iranian Azeris to Bazz, a fortress wherefrom Babek, the symbol of the national-liberation struggle of the Azeri people, routed 6 big detachments of Arab conquerors in 19 years in IX? From several hundreds of thousands to 3 million people got there despite various obstacles in the previous years…
Any movement has its own energy. In this particular case, this energy was strongly weakened before the rally in Tehran. An unofficial emergency was declared in the Iranian capital, the parliament square was cordoned by hardware and people. Additional posts were put on all the five roads leading to the parliament. Whoever tried to move towards the square was threatened, beaten, put into police cars and taken to some unknown places. Besides, Tehran residents already knew about thousands of killed, wounded and arrested people in Southern Azerbaijan. Those planning to go to Bazz were also repressed. The authorities blocked all the roads leading to the fortress, they did not let cars and busses pass and forced everybody to go back. Nevertheless, some young people got there through mountains and hoisted a flag there. As regards national-liberation movement, the history shows that such movements experience rises and falls. Fall does not mean defeat even though it, as a rule, is caused by repressions. Fall is just a respite for gaining momentum for a new rise.
Quelle: http://www.regnum.ru/english/688913.html
(http://www.regnum.ru/news/688913.html)
Jahandar Bayoglu is Chairman of the Committee of National Movement of Southern Azerbaijan. The Committee of National Movement of Southern Azerbaijan is one of the organizations protecting the rights of the Azeri population of Iran. According to various sources, there are from 25 million to 35 million of Azeris in Iran, i.e. 1/3 of the total population. They live in the northern part of Iran and the capital of that country. When saying “Azerbaijan” the leader of the movement means the territory of both the AzerbaijaniRepublic and the part of Iran with prevailing Azeri population. According to the tradition existing in some Asian countries, Bayoglu calls ethnic Azeris — “Azeri Turks.”
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Mr. Bayoglu, the leader of the Azeri opposition Party of National Independence of Azerbaijan (PNIA) Etibar Mamedov has said in a press-conference that on September 12 he will hold an international forum on the rights of ethnic Azeris in Iran. Will any foreign guests attend the forum?
Yes, besides the leaders of political parties and NGOs of the Azerbaijani Republic, attending the forum will be the leaders of a number of organizations fighting for the rights of Azeri Turks in Iran, representatives of the intelligentsia and public figures.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): And who will cover their transport and accommodation expenses – the organizers or the guests themselves?
The forum is organized by the PNIA leader, they are forming an organizational committee, which will deal with such problems.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Will the Baku forum contribute to the resolution of, at least, part of the Iranian Azeris’ problems. Do you expect that after the forum the Iranian authorities will open Azeri schools and universities and will lift or reduce their censorship on the Azeri media?
Our committee welcomes the very fact of the conduct of such a representative international forum. Now that the national movement of Turks in the south of Azerbaijan is rising – despite repressions by the Iranian authorities – it is especially important that our problems be discussed by our brothers from the north as well as by Azeris from Europe and the US. We have long needed such a forum, and I am happy that it will be held, at last. I think the forum will formulate and adopt the key principles uniting all political and public organizations of Southern Azerbaijan. It is for them to fight the way for national-cultural achievements. The history shows that under all rules the Persian chauvinism tries to suppress the rights and freedoms of other Muslim nations living in that country. Those chauvinists are especially afraid lest the Azeri Turks – who revived the Iranian statehood several centuries ago – might wake up as a nation.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Won’t the organizers (and not only they) of the Baku forum face protests on the part of Iran – through their FM or Embassy in Azerbaijan?
Certainly, the claws of the Persian chauvinism – irrespective of who is in power at the moment – reach many places in the world. Mullocratia is trying to assimilate the Azeri Turks of Iran by prioritizing religion and depersonalizing nations. They say that there is one single Iranian people, but this is not true. The so-called Iranian dissident-democrats scattered all over the US and Europe – should they come back into power – are not going to respect the right of the Azeri Turks either. The Pan-Iranian chauvinism is above time, space and ideology.
That’s why it is natural that the Turks of both Northern and Southern Azerbaijan should not pay attention to the protests of the Iranian regime. I think that even despite his former anti-Azeri statements, the organizers should invite to the forum (and they will probably do) Ambassador of Iran to Azerbaijan Afshar Suleymani (http://www.google.com/custom?domains=www.regnum.ru&q=Suleymani+&sitesearch=www.regnum.ru&client=pub-1466744838047082&forid=1&ie=ISO-8859-1&oe=ISO-8859-1&cof=GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:3366 99;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FF FFFF;LBGC:3) – not as an official serving the Iranian chauvinist regime, but as an Azeri Turk. Let him sit and listen. Perhaps, this will free his conscience from the deeply ingrained Pan-Iranian chauvinism.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): What can you say about the agenda of the forum?
I think it will reflect the above-mentioned problems and will be aimed at developing key provisions uniting all political and public organizations of Southern Azerbaijan. The specific agenda will be adopted by majority on the proposals of the organizers and participants.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): The initiator of the Baku forum Etibar Mamedov says that the international organizations have recognized as prisoners of conscience 11 people arrested and imprisoned in Iran because of “the national-liberation movement” that burst up in May 2006. However, he says that there is also a list of 200 people who are also in prison because of the movement. As a man having contacts with different regions of Iran, you may have more specific information…
When in May 2006 hundreds of thousands of Azeri Turks went into the streets and squares to protect their defamed name and rights, the panicking regime threw in jail as many as 11,000 most active protesters. Almost 5,000 of them are still in jail. I have a list with names and other data of 700 arrestees, while the international human rights organizations have for some unknown reasons received a list of 200 people.
REGNUM (http://www.regnum.ru/english/): Why, despite your expectations, haven’t the almost 8 million Azeri residents of Tehran supported the protest action? And how can you explain this year’s failure of the annual symbolic march of Iranian Azeris to Bazz, a fortress wherefrom Babek, the symbol of the national-liberation struggle of the Azeri people, routed 6 big detachments of Arab conquerors in 19 years in IX? From several hundreds of thousands to 3 million people got there despite various obstacles in the previous years…
Any movement has its own energy. In this particular case, this energy was strongly weakened before the rally in Tehran. An unofficial emergency was declared in the Iranian capital, the parliament square was cordoned by hardware and people. Additional posts were put on all the five roads leading to the parliament. Whoever tried to move towards the square was threatened, beaten, put into police cars and taken to some unknown places. Besides, Tehran residents already knew about thousands of killed, wounded and arrested people in Southern Azerbaijan. Those planning to go to Bazz were also repressed. The authorities blocked all the roads leading to the fortress, they did not let cars and busses pass and forced everybody to go back. Nevertheless, some young people got there through mountains and hoisted a flag there. As regards national-liberation movement, the history shows that such movements experience rises and falls. Fall does not mean defeat even though it, as a rule, is caused by repressions. Fall is just a respite for gaining momentum for a new rise.
Quelle: http://www.regnum.ru/english/688913.html