Coll 28/112A ‘Persia. Tabriz – Monthly despatches of internal situation in Azerbaijan & misc. reports.’ [‎42r] (84/1237)

3-
209. s-ovl^t Cultural ^c.Uvltiea . Af ter lying dormant for a few weeks
the Irano-Soviet cultural Society woke up on October 18th. and
celebrated the loOtn* amiivereary of the Armenian poet Siyat I^ova.
fh« procecdinga took the usual form of papers on the poet*a life and
work followed by a concert of Armenian and Azerbaijani music*
On October fOth* the coamittee held a business meeting to which
all the members of the society were Invited, but which was very poorly
attended, even the attract In of a film failing to draw. Sojos shrewd
questions were asked about the soolety's finances, but* it aeemsi as
a are wdly countered.
210. Dcwocrjtlc xarty AeUvltltta . the Party’s energies In the period
under review have been absorbed chiefly in organizing itself and In
programme making. It haa, however, found one opportunity to show its
mettle in action and to prove that in minatory eloquence and partisan
vituperation it is no unworthy successor of T^deh Iran. Its newspaper
'’Azerbaijan” attacked Mehdi Farruka from the moment when his
appointment was first announced* On October 9th. it called a meeting,
said to have been attended by fifteen hundred representative* citizens
of Tabriz, at which a resolution was passed warning the Oentral
Government that Farrukh’s arrival in Tabriz would be the signal for
battle. The old Tudeh line wa© closely followed* it was not the Party
who would make trouble, Farrukh was the trouble monger, coming of set
purpose as an agent provocateur to start a riot in peaceable and
peace-loving Azerbaijan. Th® specific charge* against Farrukh seem
to be that he is of bad character, that his appointment - being a mem
ber of tue Majlis - is unconstitutional, and that he has bean granted
absolute powers. Th<* tone of the resolution was fiery and, from the
speeches of various party members at the time, it might well hsve
been supposed that Farrukh’s arrival would have started a civil war
hau not these Democrats cried Wolf so often before.
viopieu of this resolution were sent to the British, kus, ian,
’Iraqi and 1‘urkiah Goneulates, ani to the Superior of the Catholic
Mission as being the unofficial representative of France. Later, in
a conversation with th Acting British Consul-General, the Soviet
Consul-General laughingly asked* ”*lu>t do they suppose you and I can
do about it ? w Xo whtth the only answer seomed to be ”What indeed ?”
One phrase in the r solution is interesting in the light of later
Party pronouncements * "There are in Azerbaijan itself people who
posi-ese good qualifications and who can manage the affairs of Azerbaij
an very well”.
Meanwhile, the settlement of the party’s own constitution has
proceeded* The final form, it seemt, was settled in the conference
which began on October 1 st., and it was published In the newspaper on
October i 4 th» The Party is organized on a regional basis with
committees, var. ing in size according to the town, in all the
provincial places. Tabriz, however, keeps a tight hold, its committee
being by far the largest, with 43 members, and reserving the right to
vet applications for membership of the provincial committees, and, it
is stiid, the sole right to n ami mate members of the Commission for the
election of a Provincial Council* This assumption of authority by
the small Tabriz clique has aroused some resentment in other towns,
particularly Messiah* It is even suested that it is undemocratic.
On October 10th. a full and detailed programme of action was
published, fr e to the Party’s policy of developing Turk! as a
literary language the programme was printed in Turki. Uafortunately,
the development of the language is getting a bit ahead of the
education of the readers of the newspaper, with the reeult that the
drafter alon^ know© what some parts of the pr >gramma mean. But that
perhaps has never been found a serious shortcoming in such works. The
programme contains fifty articles arranged under the heads of General
Political, Moonomlc and Commercial, Agricultural, Educational, Public
Health, Cultural, Maclal, Legal and Military. The "General u’oliticaL"
section contains perhaps the kernel of the matter In two articles which
ar, ue that tfcu formation of provincial and town oo noils, giving a
measure of autonomy to Azerbaijan, is essential for the Independence
and integrity of Iran, and that to secure this neceaaary local
autonomy the Democratic Party must wield unchallenged authority. The
proposals Uiiider the otic r heads are refor -iat rather
/than