Suppression of Azerbaijanis in Iran: Media Monopoly, , and Violation of Linguistic Rights

On November 28, 2024, the United Nations Minorities Forum Arcdh highlighted; Print media and broadcast media in Iran are under the monopoly of the State or of their allies, where the interests of the nation of Azerbaijan in Iran or other minority nations are either excluded, restricted or severely controlled. Let us see some of the impacts: •Azerbaijanis took to the streets in hundreds of thousands on 21 May 2006 and on 6 November 2015, when State media insulted their integrity. • Iranian State media commonly encourage Azerbaijanis to seem vulnerable and arouse contempt against them. Likewise, online media are under the watchful eye of the Iranian Cyber Police, which encourages disinformation against Azerbaijanis in social media. A recent football game on October 2024 broadcast by the Iranian national television and widely distributed on Instagram, went viral against the national integrity of Azerbaijanis. Iranian authorities never prosecute the culprits but often encourage them. We hope the Special Rapporteur is mindful Azerbaijanis are excluded from institutional media and are subjected to disinformation. I would also like to mention that Yesterday, during the meeting, the representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran claimed that Article 15 of the Iranian Constitution, which guarantees education in native languages, is implemented in Iran. This is a diplomatic falsehood. Azerbaijani activists who demand the enforcement of Article 15 are detained and imprisoned by security forces.