Today, an event dedicated to the 33rd anniversary of the events of 20th January was held at the Botany Institute of the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The participants of the event commemorated the martyrs with a minute of silence.

General director of the Institute, doctor of biological sciences, professor S.Ibadullayeva, opened the event and said that 33 years have passed since the January 20 tragedy, which is a page of heroism of the Azerbaijani people. The tragedy of January 20 remained in the memory of our people as a page of sadness and grief, as well as pride and heroism. On the night of January 19-20, 1990, a new history of Azerbaijan was written with the blood of martyrs. That event entered the heroic story of our nation as one of the brightest pages. We are primarily indebted to the martyrs of January 20 for the restoration of our state independence and freedom. The military units of the former Soviet army committed massacres against the civilians who stood up to create an independent state and gain their sovereignty in the city of Baku. This crime committed against the people of Azerbaijan is actually a terrible terrorist act against humanity, humanism, and humanity. In this tragedy, hundreds of Azerbaijani citizens were martyred, wounded and injured, as well as illegally arrested. With this, the requirements of many international documents on human rights, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have been grossly violated. After national leader Heydar Aliyev returned to political power in our country, in the special session of Milli Majlis held in February 1994, the tragedy was assessed at the state level.

The executive director of the institute, doctor of biological sciences, Shakir Gasimov, PhD in biology, Aladdin Gadimov, PhD in biology, Shakar Mukhtarova, PhD in biology, Rashad Salimov, drew attention to the causes of the events of January 20, the tense socio-political situation in Azerbaijan on the eve of those events, the insidious policy of the former Soviet leaders against our people and other important points.

The staff of the Botany Institute visited the Alley of Martyrs and placed flowers on the graves.