Stepanakert: Pogroms in Sumgait became basis forrevival of  intolerance and hatred against Armenians in Azerbaijan

ArmInfo. Today marks the 35th anniversary of the Sumgait pogroms, which have become one of the most tragic and hideous pages in the recent history of the Armenian people.

As the press service of the NKR MFA reports, the statement of the  Foreign Ministry of Artsakh reads, in part: "From February 27 to 29,  1988, in the city of Sumgait, located just 40 kilometers from Baku,  with the criminal connivance and even at the direction of the  Azerbaijani authorities, mass progroms against the Armenian  population took place, accompanied by murders, torture and other  atrocities. Armed with sharp metal rods, axes, hammers and other  improvised means, groups of pogromists, with the complete  indifference of the city law enforcement, broke into the apartments  of Armenians and retaliated against innocent people with incredible  cruelty. 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 towards Armenians  was fueled by anti-Armenian slogans and calls for violence voiced  during the 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 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 massacres of  Armenians in other cities of Azerbaijan, 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.

The pogroms in Sumgait became the basis for the revival of  intolerance and hatred against Armenians in Azerbaijan. Armenophobia  was elevated to the rank of state policy.  The inspirers and  perpetrators of this heinous crime became a role model 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!". 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 combination of these factors - a sense of impunity and  permissiveness, intolerance and hatred towards Armenians, as well as  the desire to suppress the right of the people of Artsakh to  self-determination at any cost - led to the rooting of 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.  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.

We bow to the memory of all innocent victims of Azerbaijan's  aggressive and misanthropic policy, and once again call on the  international community to take active and effective measures to  break the vicious cycle of Azerbaijan's wrongdoings, prevent new  crimes against humanity and bring those responsible to justice."