"[38] In response to these, Musavat's Achiq Söz newspaper noted that while Bolsheviks and Mensheviks were fighting all year, both were uniting against Musavat even with the Kadets and the Dashnaks. Yeni şərhləri mənə e-poçt vasitəsi ilə bildir. "Soviet Russia" published by Russian Soviet Government Bureau, 1920, page 236, Luigi Villari "Fire and sword in the Caucasus," page 186. 1918 yılının Mart olayları, tarihimizin en kanlı sayfalarındandır. In continuation of ethnic cleansing and aggression policy, Armenia occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as seven surrounding regions, making one million of the Azerbaijanis refugees and IDPs. Unfortunately we don’t know exactly whether this letter reached Shaumyan before the March events (Kobozev was at this time in Baku), and how he took part in them. March Days were a violent culmination in this assault of Russian Bolshevism against the unprepared Azerbaijani people.[7]. http://www.webriding.com/. They were deprived of about 15,000 rifles, some 70 machine guns and a score of artillery pieces. Although many years passed, that bloodshed has not been forgotten, and after the restoration of Azerbaijan's independence in 1991, then Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev declared March 31 as the Day of Genocide of Azerbaijanis which is marked every year in the country at the state level. The Azerbaijani Bolshevik organization Hümmet attempted to mediate the dispute, proposing that the arms taken from the Savage Division be transferred to the custody of the Hümmet. Writes the Rear-Admiral Mark L. Bristol, U.S. High Commissioner (Ambassador) in Istanbul, “While the Dashnaks [Armenian extremist party] were in power [1918-1920] they did everything in the world to keep the pot boiling by attacking Kurds, Turks and Tartars [Azerbaijanis]; by committing outrages against the Moslems; by massacring the Moslems; and robbing and destroying their homes. M. Tagiyev had been killed in a skirmish by Russian-Armenian forces in Lenkoran. http://myjabrail.wordpress.com [1] So the armed conflict between the Musavat and the joint Soviet-ARF forces ended on 3 April 1918 with the victory of the latter. Their arrival caused great concern among both Bolsheviks and Armenians, and when officials were sent down to the dockside to try to discover what their intentions were, they were driven back by gunfire, a number of them being killed. ", The Armenian view of the March 1918 events was documented in a letter written by Archbishop Bagrat to the American mission in Baku. Much more atrocities inflicted during punitive raid to Shamakhi and Guba where over 50 villages had been set on fire and sacked. WordPress.com-da pulsuz sayt və ya bloq yarat. Después del colapso de la Unión Soviética, cuando obtuvo la independencia de Armenia, comenzó a apoyar el terrorismo de carácter oficial, como un estado, que aprobó el terrorismo como parte integrante de su política agresiva.Mucho investigaciones forenses y las pruebas demuestran que las acciones terroristas contra la población civil de Azerbaiyán (entre ellos las explosiones de los vehículos) fueron cometidos por los servicios especiales de Armenia y financiado por el Gobierno de este estado. 6, "J3784-2011: Memorializing Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim Saturday, March 31, 2012 as Azerbaijani Remembrance Day in the State of New York", "New York State Senate adopts resolution proclaiming March 31 as remembrance day of Azerbaijanis subjected to genocide", "Nevada governor proclaims 31 March Azerbaijani Remembrance Day", "Genocide Memorial Complex opened in Guba", "French senators visit Guba Genocide Memorial Complex", "French senators visit Guba Genocide Memorial Complex – PHOTOS", Provisional Military Dictatorship of Mughan, Islamic Army of the Caucasus in Azerbaijani media, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=March_Days&oldid=980689815, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing Azerbaijani-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2011, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2019, Azerbaijan articles missing geocoordinate data, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 12,000–20,000 Azerbaijanis and Muslims including civilians, This page was last edited on 27 September 2020, at 22:03. Armed groups of Armenians burnt several villages of the gaza Nakhchivan, destroyed 115 Azerbaijani villages in the gaza Zangazur, 3257 men, 2276 women and 1296 children were murdered. Hovannisian. About history of struggle for Soviet power in Baku, Moscow, 1960, p. 71). Why Baku council obstacled the sole armed groups of moslems from peaceable leaving the city and failed to disarm armenian military units located in great amount in Baku that days? The declaration of independence in 1918 enabled Azerbaijan to investigate crimes against Turks and other Muslim population in their homeland. We did it consciously. These parties led by feudal intelligentsia (beks and khans), which settled in Elisavetpol and Tbilisi thanks to the degraded and cowardly politics of the Mensheviks became very aggressive in Baku too. We are fully sure that Kobozev (he is warned by us) will act in concordance with Stepan. Russian Azerbaijan, 1905—1920: The Shaping of a National Identity in a Muslim Community. Several historians put the total number at 20,000. “It’s shame on russian marxist to hold standpoint of armenian hen-coop… Because of “armenian” blindness you become apprentice of Purishkevichs and their nationalism” (Lenin V.I. The truth is that the Armenians under the guise of Bolshevism, rushed on the Muslims and massacred during a few frightful days more than 12,000 people, many of whom were old men, women, and children. The move sparked protests from the Azerbaijani population, with occasional calls to offer armed resistance to the Soviet. Armenian terrorism – roots and reasons” (Baku, “Azernashr”, 2000) speaking of Shaumyan’s activity in 1918 stresses that Stepan Shaumyan was leader of armenian communists in Baku where he formed bolshevist government tyranny of which intended to expatriate or exterminate Azerbaijanis. Enormous crowds roamed the streets, burning houses, killing every pass-by who was identified as an enemy, many innocent persons suffering death at the hands of both the Armenians and the Azerbaijanis. [55] Although these figures were gathered by the Armenian National Council, and have been questioned by some,[55] given the general run of events, they were unlikely to be greatly exaggerated. Text of the 1998 Presidential decree describes the March events as follows: Taking advantage of the situation following the end of the First World War and the February and October 1917 revolutions in Russia, the Armenians began to pursue the implementation of their plans under the banner of Bolshevism. In response, in February 1918, the British dispatched General Lionel Dunsterville with troops to Baku through Enzeli, in order to block the German move and to protect the British investments. Selected works, Moscow, 1978, v. II. A Yale University history professor F. Kazemzadeh, in one of the first comprehensive scholarly studies of the region in the US, wrote: “This three-day massacre by Armenians is recorded in history as the “March Events” and thousands of Muslims, old people, women and children lost their lives” (“The Struggle for Transcaucasia”, New York, 1951, p. 69). In letter addressed to Council of People’s Commissars, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic dated from April 13, 1918 Shaumyan trying to justify heinous crimes of Armenian units in Baku in March days and conceal from bolshevist authorities the real scales of Azerbaijanis slaughter made under his leadership falsified death roll, facts of threatenings by the side of moslems. The commander of the military forces of the Armenians was the same General Bagradouni, who, although he lost both of his legs during the fight, continued his duties until September 14, when the Armenians and the small number of Englishmen who came to their assistance, were forced to abandon Baku to the superior forces of the Turco-Tartars, and retreat toward the city of Enzeli in the northern Caucasus, The truly tragic turn of events came after acceptance of the ultimatum, when the Dashnakist allies of the Bolsheviks took to looting, burning, and killing in the Muslim sections of the city, 1918 massacres of Azerbaijanis and Muslims in the Soviet Union, This article is about 1918 massacres of Azerbaijanis. Confrontation with local inhabitants wasn’t necessary to Centre. About 70% of the latters were Armenians” (“Communist”, Yerevan, August 26, 1989, №199). Shaumyan wrote himself that they needed just a slightest cause for realizing their plan. The word “genocide”, coined only after the WWII, has forever entered our daily lexicon, to give the legal definition to the worst crimes against humanity, massacres, slaughters and ethnic cleansing. [5][40] The talks broke off abruptly when the Soviet's soldiers were fired upon. Presence of numerous armed dashnaks who inundated the city incandesced situation exceedingly. For sake of internationalism and consolidation of nations friendship these facts were painstakingly kept silent, concealed. Speaking before local inhabitants Amazasp declared: “I’m hero of armenian nation and protector of his interests… I’m sent here not for establishing order and Soviet power but for taking vengeance for murdered Armenians, I had commandment of killing all moslems from Caspian coasts to Shahdag and razing your dwellings to the ground. Шаумяна. Le territoire de la République d’Azerbaïdjan a 114000 sq Km. Azerbaijanis formed the majority among natives and owned the greater part of land including the oil fields. [44] Later 1919 publication by The New York Times reported – presumably citing Azerbaijani officials – that 12,000 people were killed during the March Days of 1918. In these terms the fact should be stressed that the latters consisted of armenians at 70%. Shaumyan was perfectly aware of ardent nationalistic and counter-revolutionary orientation of dashnaks’ policy. As far back as 1914 Lenin expressed in his letter to Shaumyan critical attitude to these views. Moscow, 1978, v. II, p. 249, 250). Quoted from Richard Hovannisian, “Armenia on the Road to Independence”, Berkeley, 1967, p. 41-42). No quarter was given by either side: neither age nor sex was respected. Later Shahumyan admitted that the Bolsheviks deliberately used a pretext to attack their political opponents: We needed to give a rebuff, and we exploited the opportunity of the first attempt at an armed assault on our cavalry unit and began an attack on the whole front. مزيد من التسلح امر ضروري. He was also commissioned with leading over determination of this “autonomy’s” bounds especially of adjoining moot areas (Decrees of Soviet government. The participation of the latter lent the civil war, to some extent, the character of an ethnic massacre, however, it was impossible to avoid it. La capitale est Bakou. It’s very interesting that on the eve of March developments “Bakinskiy rabochiy” newspaper published in March, 15 Lenin’s letter to Shaumyan written as early as December, 1913 where the latter has been sharply criticized for non-recognition of autonomy and self-determination right ideas (CW, v.48, p.233-236). Looking back to the passed way we observe both errors, shortcomings and those great achievements which were possible exclusively in terms of the independence. They suffered a loss of nearly 2,500 killed, while Tartars lost more than 10,000. While the Temporary Executive Committee of the Muslim National Councils and the Musavat ceased their activities in the territory of the Baku Governorate, the left-wing Azerbaijani political groups, such as the SRs and the Hümmet, benefited from the developments and became effective leaders of the Azerbaijani community in Baku. There are a multitude of other references, shocking us with the extent of the mass-murder of the days: from the founder of the Soviet state, Vladimir Lenin, where he briefly mentions the March 1918 events, by saying that the commissar S.Shaumyan, an ethnic Armenian leader of the Bolshevik and Dashnak forces, and the chief architect of the genocide throughout Azerbaijan, “turned Baku into an Armenian operated henhouse [slaughterhouse]”, to a letter from a British officer serving in Baku during the massacres of 1918 to his Whitehall superiors in which he refers to “river of blood” flowing down the streets and bodies dumped from ships into the Baku Bay by Armenians. [56], While trying to escape Baku amidst the Ottoman-Azerbaijani offensive, the Bolshevik Baku Commissars were taken by ship across the Caspian to Krasnovodsk, where they were imprisoned by the Social Revolutionary Transcaspian Government, with the alleged support of the British. 63–67. Henceforth decisions were to be taken in concord. The Armenians also slaughtered local Jews and Lezghis living in Guba," it said. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Pingback: Genocide of Azerbaijanis Remembrance Day – 31 March | The London Post, Satan is in the Vatican, says Pope’s exorcist, Kiev’s silence on Hagia Sophia transformation may symbolize another Ukraine Orthodox crisis, U.S. military officials are interested in further presence in Afghanistan due to luring contracts, USAID increases its presence in Central Asia amid the COVID-19 pandemic to foster its influence, The political control over religion in Ukraine is rising amid the Easter. Less than six months after the March massacres, when the Ottoman-Azerbaijani force entered Baku, the city fell into chaos and nearly 10,000 Armenians were massacred. The leader of the Baku Soviet, Shahumyan, kept contacts with ARF and viewed it as a source of support for eliminating Musavat influence in Baku. Others accuse Musavat that it provoked the March events by defending the idea of autonomy for Azerbaijan. Let it know the real executors of genocide on our land, those who through XX c. claimed to our areas, who hold the region’s inhabitants in permanent tension can’t go on any longer. We demand the acceptance of immediate measures to open the railroads from Baku to Tbilisi and from Baku to Petrovsk. [27] The Armistice of Erzincan, followed by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk signed on 3 March 1918, formalized Russia's exit from World War I. Firuz Kazemzadeh. In Rasulzade's view, Bolsheviks and their supporters sought to diminish Musavat's influence among Azerbaijani masses for a long time, and Muslim elites felt frustrated and powerless in face of this pressure. Vladimir Lenin even asserted in one of his speeches that "Soviet Russia can't survive without Baku oil. [50], In the immediate aftermath of the March Days, many of the Muslim survivors fled to Elisabethpol (Ganja) in central Azerbaijan. "March massacres of 1918 were well prepared and ruthlessly implemented act by radical nationalist Armenians against Azerbaijanis on the grounds of racial discrimination and ethnic cleansing.". However, in 1978, then-leader of Soviet Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev recalled the forgotten March Days in his speech dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Stepan Shahumyan as follows: In March 1918, the Musavatist anti-Soviet rebellion was raised in Baku, intending to strangle the Soviet Government. WP Designer. [25] In addition, the Armenian National Organization of the Caucasus formed an Armenian Military Committee in Petrograd under General Bagradouni and called upon all Armenian military personnel scattered throughout Russia to mobilize on the Caucasus front. Баку. "Armenia's Road to Independence", pp. In pursuance of their illegal goal of ethnic cleansing of Azerbaijanis, Armenians committed the mass killings of Azerbaijanis in March, 1918. On one side were fighting the Soviet Red Guard; the Red International Army, recently organized by us; the Red Fleet, which we had succeeded in reorganizing in a short time; and Armenian national units. [42] According to Peter Hopkirk, "Armenians, seeing that at last they had their ancient foes on the run, were now out for vengeance". Yazı göndərilmədi - e-poçt ünvanlarınızı yoxlayın! Chronology of the Armenian Genocide -- 1918. [53] Therefore, when the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was proclaimed on 28 May 1918, its government immediately dispatched a delegation to Istanbul to discuss the possibility of Ottoman military support for the young republic. All his efforts were aimed that March days on deporting Azerbaijanis from the lands for their further joining to “armenian autonomy” establishment of which was charged to Shaumyan due to decree of People’s Commissars Council dated December 29, 1917. It was necessary to use the regiment’s services, and the victory is so much great that it slightly clouds reality” (S.G.Shaumyan. Maricopa County Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program Baku, 1959, p.75). Nevertheless, in the Azeri psyche, the Baku Commune symbolized the Bolshevik – Armenian collusion born out of the March Days bloodbath. Current advancing of Armenia’s claims to Nakhchivan being primordial azerbaijani land, calls to abolishing Gars treaty concluded in October of 1921 between Russia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia and Turkey, claims to Georgian, Turkish landsall of this are after-effect of impunity reigning in world society respect to aggressive Armenian Republic. Due to the efforts of both the local Soviet and the Military-revolutionary committee of the Caucasus Army, which moved here (from Tbilisi and Sarikamish) we already had armed forces – about 6,000 strong. To prevent that, on 13 November 1917, a group of Bolsheviks and Left Socialist-Revolutionaries (SR) proclaimed the Baku Soviet, a governing body which assumed power over the territory of Baku Governorate under the leadership of Bolshevik Stepan Shahumyan. Dashnaktsutiun also had 3,000 – 4,000 strong national forces, which were at our disposal. By the fifth day, although much of the city was still ablaze, all resistance had ceased, leaving the streets strewn with dead and wounded, nearly all of them Muslims. One of the most bloodcurdling tragedies against the Azerbaijani people, is the massacre which committed with particular brutality 100 years ago - in March-April 1918, the Dashnak-Bolshevik armed groups operating under the mandate of the Baku Soviet. If he knew about concrete resolution of Centre concerning autonomy for Moslems he would have come to an agreement with “Musavat” party’s leaders and solve the problem by peaceful means. However, ignoring the decisions adopted by the respected international organizations, the Armenian side creates obstacles to the peace in the region, always demonstrating unconstructive position. [64] Consequently, when the Russian Army broke up, the Armenians preserved their discipline against all attempts of the Bolsheviks, and were the only force upon which the Allies could count in southwestern Asia during the last year of the war. Stepan Şaumyanın etirafına görə, dinc azərbaycanlıların qırğınında Bakı Sovetinin altı min silahlı əsgəri, eyni zamanda «Daşnaksütyun» partiyasının 3-4 minlik silahlı dəstəsi iştirak etmişdir. Ermənilərin Persiyadan (İrandan) bizim vilayətlərə köçürülməsi haqqında məktub – A.S.Qriboyedov, UN PETIT COUP D’OEIL SUR L’HISTOIRE ARMENIENNE, 31 March -The Day of Genocide of Azerbaijanis, 31 Mars est connue comme la Journée du génocide des Azerbaïdjanais, Maricopa County Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program. The atrocities against Azerbaijani residents of Baku, within just a few days of March 1918, were a horrific genocide. Just in Baku that days were murdered over 10000 peaceful inhabitants, in Shamakhy-7000, Guba-2000, Lankaran and Astara – more than 1000, Salyan and Hajigabul – almost 1000. Moscow, 1978, I v., p.119, 129, 185; II v., p. 216). The Ethnic Cleansing of Ottoman Muslims 1821-1922”, Darwin Press, Princeton, NJ, 1995, p. 214). For three days, 30th, 31 March and 1 April, a furious battle raged in the city of Baku. Exactly twenty years later, as the President of independent Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev issued a decree condemning March Days as the beginning of Azerbaijani genocide. Every Azerbaijani whom the Dashnak bands could catch was killed. “Musavat” party that appeared at the respective period on political struggle’s proscenium advanced “Azerbaijan’s autonomy” idea as one of the paramount programme demands. In order to achieve justice, pay tribute to the memory of martyrs who were killed during those tragedies, as well as to ensure the functionality of the norms and principles of the international law, the Government of Azerbaijan urges all states and international organizations to recognize the massacres of the Azerbaijanis on March 31 – April 2, 1918 as a genocide.