Popular Front celebrates 25th anniversary

Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan has approached its 25th anniversary, which is celebrated on July 16.

On this occasion, a solemn event was held in the Palace of Culture named after Sattar Bahlulzadeh in the village Amiradjan of the Surakhani district. Metropolitan Municipality has not given permission to hold it in the center.

The Popular Front was established in Baku on July 16, 1989. The first conference was formed by the Board, consisting of 15 people. Abulfaz Elchibey was elected PF chairman.

The impetus for the creation of this national movement was the events in Nagorno-Karabakh and the failure of the central authorities in Moscow to put out the fire of the Armenian separatists in Karabakh.

The Popular Front was active in the fight against the policy of Mikhail Gorbachev and it organized rallies and protests. Soon the Popular Front actually started to act as a political party demanding independence of Azerbaijan. The aggravation of the situation in Karabakh caused Moscow to introduce troops in Baku in January 1990 and to suppress the forces for output of Azerbaijan from the USSR.

After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the Popular Front increased again and actually became the leading political force in the country even in the state of emergency.

In March 1992, the first president of Azerbaijan, Ayaz Mutalibov resigned under pressure of the Popular Front. In May of the same year he was unable to hold on to power, despite the fact that most members of parliament voted for his return to office.

Popular Front came to power in June 1992, when the presidential election was won by the PF leader Abulfaz Elchibey who became the head of state.

In June 1993, the PF was overthrown in a military coup by Suret Guseinov, giving advantage to Heydar Aliyev to come to power.

After the coup Elchibay left Baku and moved to Nakhchivan and the party leadership was entrusted to Ali Kerimli.

Elchibey died in 2000. -0 -