Events of March 1918 in Azerbaijan are a tragic landmark in history of dissolution of the Russian Empire and the Civil War. Even if you are not aware of developments which took place in the context of a difficult ambiguous situation in the South Caucasus republics after abdication of Nikolai II and collapse of the Provisional Government, you should notice obvious coincidence – collapse of the central power brought fire of war, blood, thousands of refugees, and chaos to the South Caucasus. It concerns both January 1990 and March 1918.
There are a lot of analogies – immediate interference of non-regional forces that took over weakening Russian power; promotion of destructive nationalistic views of leaders; sudden mutual hatred that tried to be presented as “a basic principle” of relations between peoples and confessions, but that was an instrument of satisfaction ambitions of certain politicians and movements.
A striking coincidence – after the end of Baku pogroms local communists admitted they couldn’t stop pogroms of Muslim population, even though events of 1918 were caused by short-sighted unreasonable policy of the Baku Council on Ethnic Issues. These excuses remind statements by Mikhail Gorbachev about the Karabakh conflict and “black January,” don’t they?
A fragile balance between various parties in Baku was broken not only by confrontation between Musavat and Dashnaks, disarmament of the Muslim Devision, but also by the fact that the Baku Council opened Pandora Box – it used support of Dashnaks and wasn’t managed to control the situation, prevent pogroms of Muslim districts of the city.
The things that really concerned the Council become clear from the text of ultimatum that was put in to Musavat by the Committee of Revolution Defense. It had two main points: open and unconditional recognition of the Baku Council as the only power and complete obedience to its orders; withdrawing of Azeri military part of the Wild Division from Baku. If before accepting of the ultimatum’s conditions there was a little chance for avoiding blood bath, white flags in the Muslim districts became not a symbol of peace, but a signal to murder innocent people.
This invisible thread is a 70-year long bridge. Numerous victims are at both ends of it. Tragedies of innocent people who became victims of political struggle. It is really the best excuse for dry statistics – according to it, during the March events 3-12 thousand of Muslims were killed in Baku. Number of victims in other territory of Azerbaijan includes several thousands.
This blood bath was one of many episodes of the Civil War, but it was forgiven by the USSR authorities who remembered 26 Baku commissars, but forgot victims of March pogroms in the capital of Azerbaijan. History doesn’t forgive unlearned lessons.
Comments by Ismail Agakishiyev, head of the Caucasus Center of the RSUH
It is notable that opponents of Turkey effectively used the Armenian issue in the geopolitical game. Armenian military troops that fought for the Entente were involved in improving of power in the Baku situation. They were defeated by Turks and found themselves in Baku where they murdered peaceful population in the Muslim districts. These terrible events cause a lot of questions. Armenians were hurt by Ottoman Turks in 1915 and revenged Azerbaijanis because they belonged to the family of Turk peoples. They could also kill Kabardinians, Karachays, Kalmyks, Turkmens, Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Kyrgyzes… History shows that nationalist movements and desire of creating Great Armenia have led to tragic events for many times.
Alexei Vlasov. Exclusively to VK
