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News Center — The international "Blue Tongue" award (Die Blaue Zunge) is one of the most prominent symbolic honors celebrating courageous initiatives that defend freedom of expression and human values. It shines a spotlight on voices confronting oppression, gaining increasing significance amid escalating global human rights challenges.
Düzen Tekkal, a Germany-based Yezidi journalist and activist, received the international award, which is presented annually to individuals who demonstrate exceptional courage and make a positive impact on society.
Tekkal accepted the award during a ceremony in Cologne attended by approximately 15,000 people. In her speech, she drew attention to oppression in the Middle East, calling for an end to the silence surrounding the targeting of free voices. In a statement following the ceremony, she remarked: "I realize that I am standing here on behalf of fifty million Kurds, one million Yezidis, and all of humanity."
Dr. Mahmoud Mardini stated in a radio interview on the program "Caravan" on November 8, 2017, that the Ottoman Archive spans from the year 1299 to 1924, a period of approximately 725 years. This archive contains about 500 million documents, manuscripts, and books, including 950 documents related to the Yazidis, which contain fatwas (religious decrees) legalizing the killing of Yazidis. These documents also mention Yazidi tribes, their way of life, and the Lalesh Temple.
He stated that he obtained these documents, which are written in Old Ottoman, and they require accurate and recognized translation. After being translated into several languages, including Arabic, English, and German, they are to be notarized to become internationally recognized official documents.
He also mentioned that there are documents concerning the Armenians, yet many major powers have not recognized that genocide due to a lack of sufficient documentation. Based on his experience as an employee in the Ottoman Archive, he notes that some claim the number of firmans (Ottoman royal decrees) is 72, but this number refers to the period between 1514 and 1917, with the final Ottoman firman led by Ibrahim Pasha against Sinjar, Sheikhan, Bashiqa, and Bahzani. However, he notes that the number cited by the Yazidis is that there were 360 genocide campaigns against them.
The title of the book he authored is Yazidism and the Memory of Tragedies: A Testimony to History, which consists of 1,500 pages in A4 format. The book covers customs, traditions, and history so that Turks, Arabs, and Persians may know that Yazidism is a monotheistic religion that predates Abrahamic religions. The book is set to be translated into several languages.
He says that some Arab writers, such as Abdul Razzaq Al-Hasani, Abbas Al-Azzawi, and others, were unjust toward the Yazidis and that their writings contributed to the recent genocide. He also mentions that when a foreign journalist asked him about the recent 2014 genocide, he replied, "Leave this genocide aside, and come with me to the caves of Mount Sinjar, where there are the bones of Yazidi children and women who were burned."
He points out that the first fatwa for the extermination of the Yazidis was issued in 1560 by the Mufti Abu Saud al-Imadi.