Mohammed Reza Pahlavi’s rampant corruption, repression of opposition groups, censorship of the press, inadequate economic development plans, and his dependence on the West all contributed to his downfall in 1979. His policies alienated virtually all segments of Iranian society, bringing together otherwise conflicting ideological forces that were united by their opposition to his regime (Shaffer, 77). One of those forces was centered in the Azerbaijani city of Tabriz, the birthplace of the Iranian Constitution (Atabaki, 31-32).
Iranian Azerbaijan - "The Cradle of Iranian Revolution"
As the largest and most developed city in Iranian Azerbaijan (at the time of Islamic Revolution a region constituted of East Azerbaijan and West Azerbaijan provinces in northwestern Iran; not to be confused with Republic of Azerbaijan), it contained a politically and intellectually conscious population, who were well aware of the inadequate and repressive nature of Mohammed Pahlavi’s regime. Hussein-Ali Montazeri, one of the Islamic leaders of the Iranian Revolution and a revered figure in post-revolutionary Iran referred to Iranian Azerbaijan as the cradle of the Revolution (Paul, 197). The focal area of the city’s revolutionary activities was University of Tabriz, whose students went on to play a crucial role throughout the course of the revolution (Shaffer, 80-81).
The situation in Tabriz, the capital of East Azerbaijan, was unique because students in Tabriz Univeristy were faced with two grievances. First, they were disgruntled by the lack of upward mobility for university graduates and the regime’s restrictions on intellectual life. One of major blunders of Pahlavi’s policies towards high education was that his positive contributions to it, such as expansion and improvement of the country’s educational facilities, were canceled out by his inability and unwillingness to grant many graduates from politically sensitive fields the freedom to fully engage in their careers. Thus university students in Tabriz, faced with a bleak future due to restrictions on liberties within their careers, became ardent supporters of the revolutionary movement.
Second, Tabrizi youth was striving to obtain recognition of their ethnic rights and bring to attention the dismal economic conditions in Azeri provinces. Adding to their incentives for supporting the revolution was their exposure to the regime’s economic discrimination toward Iran's northwestern provinces and its suppression of the Azeri-Turkic identity (Shaffer, 80). Scores of Azeris from the provinces’ rural areas migrated to Tabriz, where high birth rates and a lack of jobs produced surplus labor, resulting in high poverty rates and forcing more and more people to live in the poor conditions of the city’s shanty towns.
Lack of Development and Backlash in Iranian Azerbaijan
In 1973 Iran’s Persian-dominated central provinces, with 20.7% of the country’s population, received 32.7% of its budget, and by 1975 half of Iran’s manufactured goods were produced in Tehran. In contrast, East Azerbaijan despite containing 10% of Iran’s population received only 4.8% of the country’s budget. Only 25% of Azerbaijani households had electricity, literacy rate in Eastern Azerbaijan was a dismal 27% and only 44% of West Azerbaijan’s children attended school (Shaffer, 64).
Exposed to these dismal trends, the intellectual residents of Tabriz, namely university students and teachers, grew more and more antagonistic towards the Pahlavi regime. Beginning in November of 1977, the anti-Shah activities in Tabriz were known for their particular intensity. On December 5, Azerbaijani students at University of Tabriz gathered and shouted slogans such as “We want democracy!” and “We demand freedom!” in the Azeri language. Another important demonstration took place on December 12, when student demonstrators engaged in physical confrontations with military units dispatched to quell the protests (Shaffer, 80-81). Several more demonstrations followed as the intensity of anti-Shah protests was rapidly increasing.
The Role of Azeri Ulama
By 1978, Shi’a Ulama (Islamic scholar) began to emerge as the revolution’s most assertive and capable force (Halliday, 11). Promising to unite Iran’s diverse ethnic groups under the banner of Islam and cleanse the country of the foreign elements that for decades interfered in Iran’s political system, the Islamic movement proved highly appealing to the Iranian masses (Shaffer, 84). As Shi’a Muslims, the Azeris produced some of the Islamic Revolution’s most influential leaders.
Virtually all of them identified as Iranians, emphasizing Islamic unity over ethnic identity. Perhaps the most revered Azeri cleric was Ayatollah Shariatmadari, one of closest associates and later a political rival of eventual Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini. An ardent believer in the Islamic unity of all Iranian people, he also supported equality for all the ethnic groups in Iran (Shaffer, 102). Along with other Azerbaijani members of Iran’s clerical elite, he utilized Azeri-Turkish when addressing the crowds and giving interviews in Tabriz.
With the demise of the Pahlavi regime, the dynasty's chauvinistic attitudes towards Persian language were largely gone and Azeris wasted little time taking advantage of the literary freedom granted in the early days of the Islamic republic. Despite the fact that the increasingly authoritarian Islamic regime eventually began placing restrictions on Azeri publications, it has been more tolerant than the Pahlavi regime in its attitude towards the expression of Azeri culture (Shaffer, 86, 89). Comparing that with the policies of Pahlavi era, during which children were beaten for speaking Azeri in their classrooms (Shaffer, 71), one can assert that Azeris came a long way in restoring the integrity of their language and culture.
Perhaps the most important Azeri language publication from revolutionary period that exists today has been Varliq (Existence). The following exert from the magazine’s opening editorial epitomizes the important role played by Azeris in the Iranian revolution and their loyalty to the Iranian nation throughout its history:
- “The people of Azerbaijan, although they retained their national identity culture and language, nevertheless remained loyal to Iran, even more so than those who wave the flag of “national unity”; the Azerbaijan people did not fail to carry out their historical and revolutionary duty when their services were needed.” (Bashgoz)
Sources
- Atabaki, T. (1993). Azerbaijan: Ethnicity and Struggle for Power in Iran. New York: I.B. Taurus.
- Bashgoz, I. (1979, September). Varliq (English Translation). Turkish Studies Association Bulletin, 3 (2).
- Halliday, F. (1979, October). The Genesis of the Iranian Revolution. Third World Quarterly, 1(4), 1-16.
- Paul, L. (1999, July). "Iranian Nation" and Iranian-Islamic Revolutionary Ideology. Die Welt des Islams, 39(2), 183-217.
- Shaffer, B. (2002). Borders and Brethren: Iran and the Challenge of Azerbaijani Identity. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.
Enver Guseynov - I majored in International Affairs with emphasis on Middle East and have written several research papers and articles on the region.
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