February 27, 1988 marked the beginning of the Sumgait Massacres, which was the Soviet Azerbaijani government’s response to peaceful protests weeks before by the people of Armenia and Artsakh demanding the reunification of Artsakh with Armenia.
The two-day pogroms, as the incident became known, resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Armenians who were tortured and faced other brutal atrocities at the hands of Azerbaijanis who were driven from their homes.
Sumgait massacre became first large-scale manifestation of the genocidal policy of Azerbaijan against Armenian people
“During several days of violence, dozens of Armenians were killed, hundreds were brutally beaten and tortured, and thousands were forcibly displaced. The atmosphere of hatred toward Armenians was fueled by anti-Armenian slogans and calls for violence voiced during rallies. The purpose of these criminal acts, organized by the Azerbaijani authorities, was to create an atmosphere of fear and thereby suppress the peaceful demands of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh,” the Artsakh foreign ministry said Monday in a statement marking the 35th anniversary of the Sumgait pogroms.
“The Sumgait massacre became the first large-scale manifestation of the discriminatory and genocidal policy pursued by Azerbaijan against the Armenian people for decades. This was followed by similar massacres of Armenians in other Azerbaijani cities, in particular Baku, Kirovabad, Shamakhi, Shamkhor, Mingechaur and elsewhere, as well as three wars unleashed against Artsakh, which were accompanied by deliberate attacks on civilians, the use of prohibited and indiscriminate weapons and other war crimes,” added the Artsakh foreign ministry.
The pogroms in Sumgait became the basis for the revival of intolerance and hatred against Armenians in Azerbaijan. Armenophobia was elevated to as state policy. Those who conceived and perpetrated this heinous crime were hailed as role models in Azerbaijan, and crimes against Armenians became the norm. Two years later, in January 1990, the Armenian pogroms in Baku were carried out under the slogan ‘Glory to the heroes of Sumgait!’” explained the foreign ministry.
“Unfortunately, Azerbaijan was not held accountable either for the pogroms in Sumgait or for subsequent genocidal actions, as a result of which an atmosphere of political permissiveness and impunity was formed for the authorities of this authoritarian state,” the Artsakh foreign ministry explained.
The combination of these factors — a sense of impunity and permissiveness, intolerance and hatred toward Armenians, as well as the desire to suppress the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination at any cost — rooted genocidal intentions against the people of Artsakh in the political consciousness and state policy of Azerbaijan. A clear manifestation of these criminal intentions is the blockade of Artsakh that has been going on for more than two months, and was driven by the desire of the Azerbaijani authorities to force the people of Artsakh to give up their collective rights, deprive them of their homeland and ultimately destroy them,” explained the Artsakh foreign ministry.
“Even after 35 years, Azerbaijan’s policy of oppression, intimidation, gross violations of human rights, the use or threat of force, as well as deportation and ethnic cleansing against the people of Artsakh has not changed. Nevertheless, despite all the difficulties and challenges currently facing the Republic, the people of Artsakh remain firm and determined to defend their rights in their historical homeland and continue the struggle for freedom, independence, democracy and human rights,” added the Artsakh foreign ministry.
A similar statement was issued by Armenia’s Foreign Ministry, which called the crimes by Azerbaijani authorities “vivid examples of state-planned Armenophobia.”
“35 years ago, on February 27-29, 1988, amid the encouragement and criminal inaction of the Azerbaijani authorities, the massacres of the Armenians in the city of Sumgait were carried out, resulting in the killing of hundreds of Armenians, including children, women, elderly, while thousands were forcibly displaced.
The pre-planned massacres by the Azerbaijani authorities were carried out in order to brutally suppress the civilised struggle of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh to live with dignity and peacefully in their historical homeland.
“The real organizers and perpetrators of the crime were not held accountable thus enabling them to act without imputing and raising a new wave of Armenophobia and intolerance, carrying out new pogroms and massacres of Armenians in Baku, Kirovabad and other Armenian-populated areas of Azerbaijan,” Armenia’s foreign ministry said.
In its statement, Armenia’s foreign ministry emphasized that what began in Sumgait in 1988 has become a policy for Azerbaijan, which driven by its hatred toward Armenians, continues to advance efforts to depopulate Armenians from their homes, “by subjecting the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh to ethnic cleansing.”
“In order to prevent it, targeted condemnation by the international community and the implementation of relevant international mechanisms is imperative,” added Armenia’s foreign ministry.
“Azerbaijan continues its policy of depopulating Nagorno-Karabakh Even today. By ignoring the orders of the reputable international courts, Azerbaijan explicitly continues to destroy, desecrate and vandalize the Armenian historical-cultural monuments and sanctuaries, aiming to erase the Armenian trace in the territories fallen under its control. Simultaneously, the propaganda of hatred toward Armenians continues at the highest level, which aims to prevent the two nations from overcoming enmity,” said Armenia’s foreign ministry, which added that Yerevan’s efforts to establish peace continually are being undermined by Baku.
