Armenian Parliament Adopts Statement on 30th Anniversary of Sumgait Pogroms

YEREVAN (Armradio) — The National Assembly of Armenia has adopted a statement on the 30th anniversary of Sumgait pogroms.

Acknowledging that Sumgait pogroms were planned and organized by the Azerbaijani authorities 30 years ago, and were another manifestation of Azerbaijan’s consistent policy of extradition and extermination of the Armenian people from its cradle, commenced with the establishment of Azerbaijan in 1918 through the massacres of Armenians, particularly in Baku – 30,000 (1918) and Shushi – 20,000 (1920), then continued in the Soviet era through the forcible eviction of Armenians of Nakhijevan and other regions, as well as repressions against the Armenians of Artsakh. This process gained the momentum, particularly, by the massacres committed against the Armenians in Sumgait, Baku and Gandzak (Kirovabad) from 1988 to 1991; since 1991 a large-scale aggression against Artsakh, with the involvement of thousands of mercenaries, closely related to the international terrorist organizations, the ethnic cleansings and deportations in 22 Armenian villages through “Koltso” (Ring) military operation, killings of elderly, women and children living in Maragha village in 1992, the annexation and de-armenization of the Shahumyan region and part of Martakert region in 1992, the murder of the population of the Khojaly town nearby Aghdam committed by the Azerbaijani armed groups and aimed at using it for the internal struggle for power in Azerbaijan and ascribing it to the Armenians, the glorification of those who committed crimes against the Armenians, disseminating anti-Armenian hatred and intolerance, the annihilation of the Armenian historical-cultural heritage, falsification of history, violation of the 1994-1995 trilateral ceasefire agreements, which have no time limitation, and subversive penetrations, murder of peaceful population and the military personnel, targeted bombings of civilian infrastructure, the new large-scale aggression against Artsakh in April 2016, which was accompanied by the gross violations of the principles of the humanitarian law – killings of children, women and elderly, the mutilations of corpses of killed soldiers, beheadings of the captured Armenian soldiers in the style of terrorist groups.

Acknowledging the fact, that the anti-Armenian violence, pogroms and deportations perpetrated by the Azerbaijani authorities in response to the peaceful demands of the people of Artsakh, who were under the threat of ethnic cleansings, de-Armenization and physical extermination, to exercise, in accordance with the norms and principles of the international law and in line with the existing at that time legislation, the implementation of one of the fundamental principles of international law – equality and self-determination of peoples, together with the extreme anti-Armenian state propaganda, has made the existence of Armenians in Azerbaijan impossible.

Stating that the Azerbaijani authorities, opposing the efforts of the international community and the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, undermine the negotiation process on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and continue to rely on the use of force and threat of force.

The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia

Condemns the massive violence, murders and deportations as well as the Armenophobic, racist manifestations and aggressive military actions against the Nagorno-Karabakh.

Commemorates the innocent victims of Azerbaijani crimes against Armenians.

Calls on the Parliaments and the Parliamentary Assemblies, the international organizations, the human rights organizations:
-to condemn the committed and ongoing atrocities of Azerbaijan against the peaceful population as well as the violations of the humanitarian law which threaten not only the Armenian people, but also the security, stability and development of the whole region.
-to undertake practical steps to prevent them.