This year, Azerbaijani nation is commemorating the 100th anniversary of the genocide committed by Armenians against Azerbaijanis in 1918.
It is to mention that in order to create a mythical state of “Great Armenia” over Azerbaijani lands, as well as over the territories of Turkey and Georgia, the Armenian chauvinists and their supporters have been carrying out the policy of ethnic cleansing, genocide and deportation against the Azerbaijanis, spanning last two centuries.
As a starting point for this policy, from the beginning of 19th century on, thousands of Armenian families were moved from Iran and Turkey onto historical territories of Azerbaijan such as Karabakh, Nakhchivan, Zengezur, also Iravan and other provinces.
In pursuance of their illegal goal of ethnic cleansing of Azerbaijanis, Armenians committed the mass killings of Azerbaijanis in March, 1918. Armenian troops murdered more than 30 000 innocent Azerbaijanis in a series of bloody massacres on March 31, subsequently on April 1-2, 1918, in Baku, Shamakhi, Guba, Kurdamir, Salyan, Karabakh, Zangezur, Nakhchivan, Irevan, Shirvan, Lankaran and other provinces of Azerbaijan. In the course of this genocide, historic buildings, worship places were subjected to shelling; the minarets of Juma and Tazapir mosques were severely damaged. All of these innocent Azerbaijanis were massacred only because of their nationality and religion. Precious historical monuments, mosques, also schools and hospitals were destroyed by the armed Armenian nationalists.
In spite of many years passed, that bloody genocide was not forgotten. Though Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) government had established the Emergency Investigation Commission in 1919 to investigate the grave crimes committed by the Armenians, after the collapse of ADR, this process was stopped.
After Azerbaijan regained its independence in 1991, the truth hidden for many years was gradually revealed. 80 years after the genocide, on March 26, 1998, by the Decree of President Heydar Aliyev “On the Genocide of the Azerbaijani people”, political assessment of those tragic events was carried out; declared as “the Day of Genocide of the Azerbaijanis”, 31 March is commemorated in Azerbaijan every year at the state level.
According to the Decree signed by Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, on “The 100th Anniversary of the 1918 Genocide of the Azerbaijanis”, relevant Plan of Actions was approved and is being implemented.
Zakirə Əliyeva
