Coll 28/112A ‘Persia. Tabriz – Monthly despatches of internal situation in Azerbaijan & misc. reports.’ [‎6r] (12/1237)

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252# .^l.hUa.^1 a. The past &Dnth has seen tbe raltllisant of
all Ui« political part of the democrat Party’s pro rama, and
Parisian Azerbaijan is now an autonomous state more independent of
>\ the Central Government than, say, a Swiae Canton or a State of
the United S’.-.tea of A&t/rica# but - 'The further off fr m England,
nearer ii to 1'ranee"♦ ihere is no railway to Tehran, but there
^ perfectly good one to Baku, and at the moment it looks as
though that is zhwre Autonomous Azerbaijan is heading. The Central
Gowernarnt have so far shown a most uae one History attitude to the
Aakrrhaijan rebels; thii rebels themselves are in urgent need of
financial assistance; the tr^de of the province is at a standstill
for lack of an outlet and the very existence of the Autonomous
Government depends entirely on the supprt of a foreign a nay. Thus,
while it would be rash to assume thut some kind of bargain may not
y<at be driven vith Tehran, at the moment Autonomous Aserbal an
feels much moiv like a part of Russia than of Iran* Indeed, present
inuicationa are that Iron’s only hope of retaining Azerbaijan Is
ttuit the Russians ar* alter bigger garnet the tail of the donkey
lu a most u. iul ins .rurgent of persuasion up to the moment wnen it
is twisted off.
Meanwhile, the new administration has begu * to i uncti on at
least as eliitiently as the old one• The u^mocrata arc u . ing
high-handed methods to put their ~conomlc pro,ramme into force,
but they art maintaining security in all parts of the province and
have already liquidated several comuon criminals who have been a
nuisance to Tabriz for years. The Cultural *-r©gramme is being
implemented? Turki naa been substituted for Persian in the
schools and Government departments. The p.rm nent farm of local
GoV'-rnmeat for towns and villages through regionel Oouneils
still rersains to be settled*
,11 ,„u 4aslen Regime). The death knell of
th« morio nn Persian s&aai a 1st ration was sounded by the events in
mianeh and barab on November 16th. (Last diary, para 224). It
could not fall beo&usg it had already touched bottom, but the
pieces were swept up on December i,:ta* and loth, lq an^hile tte
Central Government, perhaps as iii duty bound, out with a curiou
inability to appreciate he situation here, sent off Murtesm Bsyat,
the Governor-General De.ignato of the Third and Fourth Ustans. 1
arrived in a Soviet aircraft on ilovember 28th. he was said
to be authorized to carry out wide reforms and to negotiate for any
settlement which would not violate the conet.itutloa or integrity
of Iran* Ssrtip Durakhshani, the Commandant of tbs T^rsisn
Garrison, iiasBan Daulatshahi, the Acting Sovemor-Oeoar*! and the
heads of Peprtmenta and a number of prominent merchant a turned
out to meet him, but no-on# ventured to express .uuch confidence in
his permanence, he cams accompanied by the a 4 ,ed Mubassir Ros^inni
who uaa Governor of Tabriz u/itil early t^ia year sad who has a
reputation both for honasty and for ability to get on with tne
Russians.
nayat wm> not attacked in the Lemacrat pressi ha was simply
ignored* After s feu days it became as plain to him as to ov^r/
otrit r Tarsi an official nerd that the sole reason why the rersiu
udmiiilsti'iution still exlyted wus that tbu Dsmocr ta v.crc not cjuite
ready to remove it* He issued a proclamation an .Geaesiber 12th*,
auvertisixig himself a a ‘ liberal" anu inviting 5, all parties’* to
discuss the problems of Azerbaijan with iai and declaring
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