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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, January 20, 2015, marked the 25th anniversary of |
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Black January, the event that signaled the beginning of the end of |
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Soviet rule in Azerbaijan; and |
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WHEREAS, On that day in 1990, 26,000 troops from the U.S.S.R. |
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invaded Azerbaijan in response to a growing independence movement |
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in the country, and the soldiers stormed the capital city of Baku in |
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tanks and armored vehicles; despite the overwhelming show of force, |
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Azerbaijanis kept up a courageous resistance to the invasion, |
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continuing their fight into February; and |
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WHEREAS, According to Azerbaijani records, at least 170 |
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Azeris were killed in the conflict, more than 320 went missing, over |
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700 were wounded, and some 800 people were arrested; although the |
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Baku incursion caused terrible suffering and loss, it helped bring |
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about change by strengthening support for independence among |
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Azerbaijanis; and |
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WHEREAS, That dream became a reality on October 18, 1991, |
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when the parliament of Azerbaijan voted to restore the country's |
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independence, and later that year, the Soviet Union itself was |
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dissolved; and |
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WHEREAS, A quarter-century after Black January, the |
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determined response of Azerbaijanis to Soviet oppression remains an |
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inspiring example of the quest for freedom; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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Legislature hereby commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Black |
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January events in Azerbaijan. |