The Iranian oppressive regime barred Mahsa Amini’s family from traveling to France to receive her prestigious Sakharov Prize, awarded posthumously. Following this, Fulvio Martusciello, head of the Forza Italia delegation and MEP for the EPP group, posed questions before the European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, concerning the plight of women and minorities in Iran and called on him to take a stand on this pressing issue.
Mahsa Amini, who was killed by the Iranian regime, was of Kurdish descent, and there are many other non-Persian minorities in the country such as Azerbaijanis, Arabs, Baluchis and Turks. Martusciello emphasized that the Azerbaijani population, which is the largest minority in the country, is brutally oppressed by the Iranian regime. The so-called southern Azerbaijanis, who number approximately 30 million in Iran, are deprived of basic rights. Even the exact number of Azerbaijanis living in Iran is unknown, as the authorities consider this information too sensitive.
The Persian-controlled Iranian administration seeks to eradicate the culture and sense of self-determination of the Azerbaijani people, turning them into “Persians”. Simply put, the regime does not recognize their children as citizens of Azerbaijani origin.
The very essence of the national identity and culture of the Azerbaijani people is not allowed to exist. Their language has never been recognized as an official language, it is not used in official correspondence, and the government forbids its use, study and teaching.
The poverty rate among Azerbaijanis in Iran is one of the highest. They are underrepresented in key positions. They are not allowed to form their own ideological groups and associations.
EU institutions have been informed about the human rights situation thanks to several significant associations of southern Azerbaijanis and prominent media organizations. They continually send reports about human rights violations by the IRGC against Azerbaijani activists demanding equal rights. The Iranian regime imprisoned Hamid Yeganapur from Maragha, Arash Johari from Mughan, Peyman Ibrahimi from Tabriz, Alirza Ramezani from Qazvin and many other Azerbaijani activists
Members of the EU Parliament called on Mr. Borrell personally, as well as the EU Parliament as a whole to take a tougher stance against Tehran’s violations. They demanded an immediate end to social, ethnic, economic and environmental discrimination against Azerbaijanis and other minorities.
