US Congressman sends letter on Black January to Azerbaijani diaspora

“It is important that everyone around the world remember the tragedy of Black January and honor those who lost their lives," US Congressman Dean Heller said in his letter.

Congressman Heller reminded that, twenty years ago, one of the last brutal acts of the Soviet empire took place in Azerbaijan.

"On January 19 and 20 of 1990, Soviet troops invaded the capital city of Azerbaijan in what was an attempt to suppress the widespread feelings amongst the Azerbaijani population of obtaining independence from the Soviet Union. More than a hundred Azerbaijani civilians were killed, and more wounded, by Soviet troops that entered the city of Baku in an event that has become known as the "Black January."

Congressman Heller also stresses that Black January marked beginning of the end of Soviet rule in Azerbaijan.

"Azerbaijan restored its independence from the Soviet Union on October 18, 1991. Every year, on the 19th and 20th of January, the people of the Republic of Azerbaijan pay tribute to those citizens who paid the highest price possible in the struggle for the independence of their home country. Please rest assured that I will remember your thoughts on this important issue," the letter read.

/APA/