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90 years have passed since the establishment of Azerbaijan Peopleâ€™s Republic

27 May 2008 21:21 (UTC +04:00)

APR was declared on May 28, 1918 in Tiflis (Tbilisi) by the Azerbaijan National Council headed by Mahammad Amin Rasulzadeh. The Declaration of Independence adopted by the National Council stated to the world about the establishment of the first democratic parliamentary republic in the Turkic-Moslem world. The Declaration reads:
1. Azerbaijani People have a power and Azerbaijan located in the South-Eastern Caucasus is fully legitimate independent country from today.
2. Form of government in independent Azerbaijan is Peopleâ€™s Republic.
3. Azerbaijan Peopleâ€™s Republic intends to establish friendly relations with other nations, particularly with neighboring nations and states.
4. Azerbaijan Peopleâ€™s Republic gives equal political and civil rights to its citizens without distinction as to their national identities, faiths, classes and races.
5. Azerbaijan Peopleâ€™s Republic creates wide opportunities for the free development of all nations living in its territory.
In that time, the government of Azerbaijan temporarily located in Ganja City, because Baku was under the control of Bolshevik Baku Council led by Stepan Shaumian and dashnak armed units. On September 15, 1918 after the heavy battles Azerbaijani National Army and Caucasian Islamic Army led by Nuru Pasha liberated Baku from Bolshevik, dashnak and English military units and independent Azerbaijani Government moved to Baku.
Azerbaijan Peopleâ€™s Republic existed for 23 months only and issued a number of important laws and carried out political, military, legal and economic reforms. The Republic gave to Azerbaijani history such figures like Mahammad Amin Rasulzadeh, Fathali Khan Khoysky, Alimardan Bey Topchubashov and Nasib Bey Yusifbeyli. Azerbaijan Peopleâ€™s Republic fell as a result of occupation of Azerbaijan by the Soviet Russian XI Red Army. Founders of the APR were shot dead and others were sent to exile or immigrated to foreign countries. Mahammad Amin Rasulzadeh was also forced to spend his life in exile in the different countries, but he never lost his belief that Azerbaijan will achieve its independence again. Rasulzadeh died on March 6, 1955 in Turkey at the age of 71.