A commemoration event devoted to the 32nd anniversary of the January 20 tragedy took place at the Institute of Control Systems of ANAS
20.01.2022 /A commemoration event devoted to the 32nd anniversary of the 20 January tragedy took place in the Institute of Control Systems of ANAS. The event was attended by the administration of the institute, heads of departments and laboratories, scientists and experts. First, a minute of silence was observed in memory of the victims of the tragedy.
Opening the event, General Director of the ICS, academician Ali Abbasov informed the participants about the history, causes and consequences of the events of January 20, one of the most cruel and terrible crimes against humanity. He noted that the unjust soviet regime tried to stifle the will of the Azerbaijani people, its striving for freedom, break its unity, and committed an unprecedented crime on the night of January 19 to 20, 1990. Thus, the order on the declaration of the state of emergency in Baku was hidden from the Azerbaijani people thanks to a cunning plan by Mikhail Gorbachev: the power unit of Azerbaijani television was blown up. Without warning, the Soviet army entered Baku and other areas and brutally attacked the civilian population. As a result of this aggression 147 people were brutally killed, 744 people were wounded and more than 800 people were arrested. The declaration of the state of emergency was announced in the morning of January 20.
Speaking about the reasons of the tragedy, Ali Abbasov said that what happened was a criminal plot of the collapsing Soviet regime to hinder the peaceful liberation movement of the Azerbaijani people, break the dream of independence and violate the territorial integrity of the country. Back in the 1980s, the Soviet leadership, which tried to give independence to Nagorno-Karabakh, patronizing Armenians who encroached on the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, committed a number of crimes, deported Azerbaijanis from Karabakh and Yerevan, organized the Sumgayit events. However, the invincible and brave Azerbaijani people did not give up on their dream of independence. The day after the tragedy, people gathered in the squares came to bury their innocent countrymen, calling for freedom.
Speaking about the consequences of the bloody events of January, A. Abbasov deplored the indecision of the then Azerbaijani leadership and its failure to take the right steps. He especially emphasized that the harshest statement against the Soviet regime, which had perpetrated genocide against the Azerbaijani people, was made by the national leader, the brilliant Heydar Aliyev. The great leader, who was under pressure from the USSR, despite the danger to his life, took steps to convey to the world the people's desire for freedom and the voice of truth. On the next day after the tragedy, January 21, Heydar Aliyev, visiting the Permanent Mission of Azerbaijan in Moscow, held a press conference and gave the first political assessment of the tragedy, condemned the genocide committed by the Soviet leadership, calling it a criminal act, and strongly criticized Gorbachev. The national leader together with members of his family took part in the marches in Moscow to protest against the events of January 20. After Heydar Aliyev's return to political power, the events of 20 January were first discussed at the state level at a special meeting of the Milli Majlis on March 29, 1994 and were assessed as a criminal act against the Azerbaijani people.
Thanks to the efforts of the great leader, the events of January 20 were given a due assessment by the world community, and were perceived as a threat to the freedom of the Azerbaijani people, as an aggression against the civilian population. Information about this was published in the world's leading media outlets, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, and the event was described as the beginning of the collapse of the USSR. In that difficult period, in constrained conditions, ANAS, including the Institute of Control Systems (Institute of Cybernetics), took steps to get the Azerbaijani realities across to the world, relevant statements were sent.
А. Abbasov said that one of the main lines of the state policy after President Ilham Aliyev, the follower of the political course of great leader Heydar Aliyev, came to power was to inform the world about the just struggle of Azerbaijani people for peace and strengthen the unity of the world. With the purpose of perpetuating the date of January 20, the leadership of the state takes actions, various conferences, commemorative events are held all over the country and abroad.
The academician stressed that this tragedy committed by the unjust Soviet leadership could not break the striving and determination of the strong Azerbaijani people towards independence. Thus, January 20 is remembered not only with pain and sorrow, but also as a day of honor. Today the memory of victims of the tragedy of January 20, one of the bloodiest and most glorious pages in the history of Azerbaijan is honored, the anniversary of the tragedy is accompanied by many visits to the Alley of Martyrs and carnations, a symbol of this tragedy, are laid on the graves of the fallen.
Then, Chair of the Council of Young Scientists and Specialists of ICS Lamiya Najafova spoke about the consequences of the January 20 tragedy aimed at undermining the liberation struggle of the Azerbaijani people, the work done to convey the true voice of the people to the world. She said that one of the priority areasof the youth policy of the Republic of Azerbaijan is bringing up the youth in the spirit of patriotism. Young generation raised as a result of this successful policy will never forget that bloody January 20 was not only a day of tragedy in memory of people, but also a page of honor in its history.
Then Corresponding member of ANAS GorkhmazImanov, Professor Elchin Aliyev and Doctor of Mathematics Ilgar Mammadov spoke about the causes and consequences of January 20, shared their memories and said that these events are not only one of the terrible tragedies of the Azerbaijani people, but a symbol of the struggle for freedom, a heroic chronicle, and will never be erased from the memory of people.
Then, young scientist Rahiya Niyazova shared her thoughts about the events of January 20.
At the end, Executive Director of the Institute, Corresponding Member of ANAS Aminaga Sadigov reminded the participants about the scale and horror of the January 20 tragedy and emphasized the importance of holding events devoted to this tragedy in the country to prevent the repetition of such events in the future. He noted that the main task of Azerbaijani scientists is to analyze these events, pass honest results to new generations and give them recommendations on development and strengthening of our country.
А. Sadigov emphasized that the liberation of the Karabakh lands had been achieved as a result of measures taken after the national leader Heydar Aliyev came to power, and then consistent steps taken by Ilham Aliyev to strengthen the country. The Executive Director thanked the martyrs and expressed his condolences to their families.
A video prepared by the Public Relations Department of the ICS was demonstrated at the event.
The memory of the martyrs who gave their lives for the independence and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan will forever live in our hearts!