The Ministry of Education acknowledged a mistake in covering the tragedy of January 20

Baku/18.02.22/Turan: The Ministry of Education issued an order from the minister to hold commemorative lessons and events in educational institutions on the eve of the 32nd anniversary of the tragic January (1990) tragedy in Azerbaijan.

Teachers will use textbooks for schoolchildren and methodological guides for teachers approved by the Ministry of Education. In the Russian language textbook for the fourth grades of Azerbaijani schools, in chapter 79, the text "January 20 - the day of memory and sorrow" is placed, which says that the execution of civilians in Baku took place during the battle of the Soviet army with the rebels of the Popular Front of Azerbaijan.

Thus, it is made clear that part of the blame for the death of 131 and the wounding of 744 Azerbaijanis lies with the citizens of the Republic - "the armed militias of the Popular Front."

There is no such statement in other school textbooks. The manuals for senior classes unequivocally tell about the violence of the Soviet military against the civilian population.

On the 31st anniversary of the tragedy, last year, the website of the President of Azerbaijan wrote that the Soviet army shot peaceful demonstrators who protested against the pro-Armenian policy of the USSR. The event of January 20 is called "mass terror". It  is not said in the  website  of the president about the "militias".

A textbook page with an anti-Azerbaijani text has been circulated on social networks and is being actively discussed by dissatisfied readers.

The Ministry of Education received a request from Turan. The same question came to the Ministry from other media. The publishing house "Şərq-Qərb" responded by acknowledging the error in the textbook, which was out of print in 2019. The error has been corrected in the electronic version of the same textbook at www.trims.edu.az, the publishing house said.

In the corrected text, the event of January 20, 1990 is assessed as the heroism of the Azerbaijani people, who came out with a legitimate demand for freedom against the armed empire. —0--