Jafar Pishevari
Encyclopedia
Sayyed Ja'far Pishevari (1893 - 11 June 1947) was the founder and chairman of separatist and communist Azerbaijan People's Government
(November 1945 – November 1946), created and supported by Soviet occupational forces in north-western Iran
.
in Ardabil
province, Iran
. He had lived in the Caucasus in the early 20th century and was introduced to Marxism
during this period. He was a member of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
.
He was a founding member of the Communist Party of Iran
(not to be confused with the Tudeh Party), established in 1920, in Rasht
. He became a journalist and communist activist in the 1920s.
He was arrested and imprisoned for some time in the late 1930s and early 1940s by the government of Reza Shah Pahlavi for his communist ideas and activities. He was released from prison after Reza Shah was deposed by the Allies
in 1941. He went to Tabriz
and established the Azerbaijani Democratic Party
with manifest material and organizational support from the USSR. He was the ADP candidate for the Majlis but was denied entry by the electoral supervisory body due to suspect campaigning practices and suspicion of vote rigging.
founded the communist Azerbaijan People's Government
in November 1945 during their occupation of Northern Iran, making Pishevari its leader. His government's actions, including organizing and arming local militias, disarming of regular Iranian military and police forces, setting up an independent judiciary based on the Soviet legal system, levying taxes, land reform without ratification of the Majlis
, using Azarbaijani Turkish as the official language and banning the usage of Persian
, and setting up an alternative curriculum and educational system, were viewed with deep suspicion by the central government and other Iranians.
Following an agreement reached between the governments of Iran and the USSR under intense American pressure, who viewed Pishevari's government as a not-too-subtle scheme by the USSR to partition Iran, Soviets removed their protection. Iranian armed forces
, kept away from the provinces of Azerbaijan and Kurdistan by the Red Army
presence since 1942, entered these provinces in November 1946. Pishevari's self-proclaimed government collapsed quickly, as many of the people welcomed the central government's troops. By December 1946, both Azarbaijan and Kurdistan were evacuated by the Soviet forces and the Iranian government re-established control over the USSR-occupied territories. It appears as if his government was becoming very unpopular, especially in larger cities where the merchants feared communism
.
After the collapse of this short-lived republic, he fled to Azerbaijan SSR
and died in a car crash in Baku
, 1947. Some historians speculate that he was killed by the KGB
. To date, their claim has not been verified.
His legacy is a matter of heated debate today. While many Iranians consider him as either a Soviet stooge or a traitor, he is considered a national hero for Azeri nationalists or a socialist revolutionary by the Iranian Left. It is now beyond doubt that he had the support of Joseph Stalin
and the USSR in setting up his government. There is also no doubt that USSR indeed wanted to annex several provinces in northern Iran.
Available sources show that Soviet territorial aspirations included provinces of Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Gilan, Mazandaran, and Khorasan. What Pishevari intended to achieve and his role in the Soviet plans is a matter of debate though. Some scholars on the Left argue that he never intended to partition Iran and what he wanted was a gradual transformation of the whole country to a communist state. Those on the Right argue that the proclamations and directives issued by his person and his government leave no doubt that he intended to join his republic to the Azerbaijan SSR, and thus the Soviet Union.
Azerbaijan People's Government
The Azerbaijan People's Government was a short-lived, Soviet-backed client state in northern Iran. Established in Iranian Azerbaijan, the APG's capital was the city of Tabriz...
(November 1945 – November 1946), created and supported by Soviet occupational forces in north-western Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
Life
He was born in KhalkhalKhalkhal
Khalkhal or Khalkhāl may refer to:*Xalxal, Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan*Xalxal, Oghuz, Azerbaijan*Khalkhal County, a subdivision of Ardabil Province, Iran*Herowabad, a city in Ardabil Province, Iran...
in Ardabil
Ardabil
Ardabil is a historical city in north-western Iran. The name Ardabil probably comes from the Zoroastrian name of "Artavil" which means a holy place. Ardabil is the center of Ardabil Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 412,669, in 102,818 families...
province, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. He had lived in the Caucasus in the early 20th century and was introduced to Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
during this period. He was a member of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party , also known as Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party or Russian Social Democratic Party, was a revolutionary socialist Russian political party formed in 1898 in Minsk to unite the various revolutionary organizations into one party...
.
He was a founding member of the Communist Party of Iran
Communist Party of Iran
The Communist Party of Iran is an Iranian communist party which is active in the fight against the Islamic Republic of Iran.It was founded in 1983 in Iranian Kurdistan after Komalah merged with Union of Communist Militants...
(not to be confused with the Tudeh Party), established in 1920, in Rasht
Rasht
Rasht is a city in and the capital of Gilan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 551,161, in 159,983 families.Rasht is the largest city on Iran's Caspian Sea coast. It is a major trade center between Caucasia, Russia and Iran using the port of Bandar-e Anzali...
. He became a journalist and communist activist in the 1920s.
He was arrested and imprisoned for some time in the late 1930s and early 1940s by the government of Reza Shah Pahlavi for his communist ideas and activities. He was released from prison after Reza Shah was deposed by the Allies
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
in 1941. He went to Tabriz
Tabriz
Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...
and established the Azerbaijani Democratic Party
Azerbaijani Democratic Party
The Azerbaijan Democratic Party was a democratic party supported by the Soviet Union and founded by Jafar Pishevari in Tabriz, Iran, in September 1945. It was founded as an opposition party against the Pahlavi dynasty. The ADP ruled the Soviet-backed Azerbaijan People's Government from 1945 until...
with manifest material and organizational support from the USSR. He was the ADP candidate for the Majlis but was denied entry by the electoral supervisory body due to suspect campaigning practices and suspicion of vote rigging.
Political career
The Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
founded the communist Azerbaijan People's Government
Azerbaijan People's Government
The Azerbaijan People's Government was a short-lived, Soviet-backed client state in northern Iran. Established in Iranian Azerbaijan, the APG's capital was the city of Tabriz...
in November 1945 during their occupation of Northern Iran, making Pishevari its leader. His government's actions, including organizing and arming local militias, disarming of regular Iranian military and police forces, setting up an independent judiciary based on the Soviet legal system, levying taxes, land reform without ratification of the Majlis
Majlis of Iran
The National Consultative Assembly of Iran , also called The Iranian Parliament or People's House, is the national legislative body of Iran...
, using Azarbaijani Turkish as the official language and banning the usage of Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, and setting up an alternative curriculum and educational system, were viewed with deep suspicion by the central government and other Iranians.
Following an agreement reached between the governments of Iran and the USSR under intense American pressure, who viewed Pishevari's government as a not-too-subtle scheme by the USSR to partition Iran, Soviets removed their protection. Iranian armed forces
Armed forces
The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
, kept away from the provinces of Azerbaijan and Kurdistan by the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
presence since 1942, entered these provinces in November 1946. Pishevari's self-proclaimed government collapsed quickly, as many of the people welcomed the central government's troops. By December 1946, both Azarbaijan and Kurdistan were evacuated by the Soviet forces and the Iranian government re-established control over the USSR-occupied territories. It appears as if his government was becoming very unpopular, especially in larger cities where the merchants feared communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
.
After the collapse of this short-lived republic, he fled to Azerbaijan SSR
Azerbaijan SSR
The Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Azerbaijan SSR for short, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union....
and died in a car crash in Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
, 1947. Some historians speculate that he was killed by the KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
. To date, their claim has not been verified.
His legacy is a matter of heated debate today. While many Iranians consider him as either a Soviet stooge or a traitor, he is considered a national hero for Azeri nationalists or a socialist revolutionary by the Iranian Left. It is now beyond doubt that he had the support of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
and the USSR in setting up his government. There is also no doubt that USSR indeed wanted to annex several provinces in northern Iran.
Available sources show that Soviet territorial aspirations included provinces of Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Gilan, Mazandaran, and Khorasan. What Pishevari intended to achieve and his role in the Soviet plans is a matter of debate though. Some scholars on the Left argue that he never intended to partition Iran and what he wanted was a gradual transformation of the whole country to a communist state. Those on the Right argue that the proclamations and directives issued by his person and his government leave no doubt that he intended to join his republic to the Azerbaijan SSR, and thus the Soviet Union.
External links
- 1945-46 Iranian Crisis Cold War International History Project, retrieved 2008-05-22
- photograph, retrieved 2008-05-22
