February 27, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 39 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E227]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          RECOGNIZING THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BAKU POGROMS

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                        HON. KATHERINE M. CLARK

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 27, 2020

  Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize 
the 30th anniversary of the anti-Armenian pogroms in then-Soviet 
Azerbaijan's capital of Baku.
  In January 1990, a violent seven-day long riot in Baku broke out 
against the city's ethnic Armenian civilian population. Approximately 
90 Armenians were killed, and hundreds more were brutally beaten and 
forced to abandon their homes. The Baku Pogrom was just one of several 
anti-Armenian attacks that took place across Azerbaijan from 1988 to 
1990 that were enabled by the Azerbaijani government. From Sumgait to 
Kirovabad and Baku, Armenian Christians living in the country were 
murdered, raped, and robbed. These vicious attacks led to the 
displacement of thousands of Armenian families fleeing the targeted 
violence as refugees.
  These were crimes against humanity that have still gone unrecognized 
by Azerbaijan. I call upon their government to acknowledge and condemn 
these acts of violence, actively prosecute the perpetrators of these 
crimes, and take all appropriate action so that these atrocities never 
happen again.
  Throughout history, the Armenian people have been targets of 
violence, murder and genocide. We must emphatically condemn these 
actions and any efforts to erase these atrocities from our collective 
memory. Failure to do so will only serve to embolden purveyors of 
violence against religious and ethnic minorities around the globe. I 
look forward to working with my colleagues in the Armenian Caucus to 
continue pushing policies promoting peace and human rights for 
Armenians and for all.
  If we do not stand up to hate, we cannot end the cycle of 
intolerance.

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