YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)–Azerbaijan’s President Gaidar Aliyev issued a decree–forming a governmental commission to organize programs to mark the eighth anniversary of events which occurred on Jan. 20–1990 in Baku. ANS-Press reported that on that date–at nigh–Soviet troops entered Baku. "Kremlin leaders at the time did not like the Azeri people’s aspiration for independence. 200 civilians died as a result of that inhuman act–dozens of people became invalids. And–though–many of those officials who issued that order are known today–up to the present they have not been punished," ANS-Press reported.
The commission–headed by Deputy Prime Minister Azzet Roustamov–includes Defense Minister Safar Abiyev–Interior Minister Ramil Usubov and other high-ranking officials.
It is commonly known–as Noyan Tapan reported–that mass pogroms of Armenia’s were organized in Baku on Jan. 13-19–1990–as a result of which more than 100 people died–according to unverified data provided by the Prosecutor’s Office of Armenia. Pogroms also resulted in complete deportation of the Armenian population from the capital of Azerbaijan. Soviet army and interior troops entered Baku following a direct order by Nikolay Ryzhkov–then head of the Soviet government those times. Nikolay Ryzhkov testified to this in 1997. The responsibility for the belated decision lies on Mikhail Gorbachev–who–of course–was very well informed of the situation.
It is true that the intrusion of the army resulted in innocent civilian victims. As a matter of fact–the action–aimed at stopping mass violence and disturbances–was executed with numerous mistakes on the part of the military. It cannot be denied that a certain number of Armenia’s were saved by that act.
It should be noted that in January 1990 the board of the Armenian National Movement addressed the National Front of Azerbaijan a telegram voicing its condolences in connection with the death of innocent people. At the same time–through the mediation of National Fronts of Latvia and Estonia–as well as the Lithuanian "Sayudis," talks between the National Front of Azerbaijan and the Armenian National Movement. The negotiations were interrupted after the factual deportation of the Armenian population from the villages of Kamo and Azat in Azerbaijan’s Khanlar region–which was conducted by the Azeri authorities with the participation of the interior troops of USSR. At the same time–a state of emergency was introduced in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Republic–following a decision by Mikhail Gorbachev.
The current leadership of Azerbaijan and its forerunners deliberately suppressed the facts of mass pogroms and deportation of the Armenian population from Baku on January 13-19–1990.