March 31 – Day of Genocide of Azerbaijanis
In 1918 the leader of the Russian Bolsheviks Vladimir Lenin appointed Stephan Shaumyan the extraordinary Commissar of the Caucasus and sent him to Baku. The Bolsheviks seized power in Baku and created conditions for the Armenian armed formations to realize their secret purposes. On March 3, began the mass slaughters of the Azerbaijanis. By the acknowledgements of Stephan Shaumyan, 6000 armed soldiers of the Baku Soviet and 4000 armed men from “Dashnaksutyun” party took part in the massacre of the peaceful Azerbaijanis.
By Decree of Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev, dated March 26, 1998, March 31 is commemorated as the Day of Genocide of Azerbaijanis.
