June 1993. At the front Kalbajar has been lost, a military unit in Ganja no longer obeys the capital, and President Abulfaz Elchibey struggles to govern the country. In these days the country’s leadership invites Heydar Aliyev, who lives in Nakhchivan and once headed the republic, to Baku. How did a man who had spent almost three years in Nakhchivan come to be called to the capital in the country’s hardest days? We look for the answer in the Nakhchivan period, in the birth of the New Azerbaijan Party and in the crisis of 1993.
Nakhchivan: a new political centre (1990–1992)
Heydar Aliyev was born in Nakhchivan in 1923. He led the Azerbaijan SSR in 1969–1982 (see “Social and economic growth in the 1970s–1980s: the leadership of Heydar Aliyev”), became a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the USSR and first deputy chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers in 1982, and left these posts in October 1987. After the tragedy of 20 January he came to the Permanent Mission of the Azerbaijan SSR in Moscow and made a statement (see “20 January 1990: our memory of blood, our pride”).
In the summer of 1990 he returned to Baku and in the autumn moved to Nakhchivan, where he was elected a deputy. On 17 November 1990, at a session he chaired, the Supreme Soviet of Nakhchivan (later the Supreme Majlis) removed the words “Soviet Socialist” from the name of the autonomous republic and adopted the tricolour flag of 1918. This step came before Baku: the same decision was taken for the whole republic on 5 February 1991 (see “The restoration of independence and the power struggles (1991–1993)”).
In the summer of 1991 he left the Communist Party of the USSR, and in the same year he was elected chairman of the Supreme Majlis of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Thus a politician who had withdrawn from party posts but had not lost his standing among the people became head of the autonomous republic.
The defence of Nakhchivan and the New Azerbaijan Party
In 1991–1992 Nakhchivan lived under blockade: roads, energy and food lines were cut and border villages came under fire from Armenian armed forces. Besides the organisation of defence, relations with Turkey, the guarantor of the Kars treaty, were of vital importance for the autonomous republic. Nakhchivan was defended against the Armenian attacks, the main territory of the autonomous republic was not occupied, and internal stability was kept.
On 21 November 1992 the founding conference of the New Azerbaijan Party (YAP) was held in Nakhchivan and Heydar Aliyev was elected its chairman. The ideology of the party was Azerbaijanism: state independence, territorial integrity and the unity of all citizens. YAP brought together forces dissatisfied with the policy of those in power.
| Person | Role | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Heydar Aliyev | Chairman of the Supreme Majlis of Nakhchivan (1991–1993); chairman of YAP (from 21 November 1992); chairman of the Supreme Council (15 June 1993); president (from 3 October 1993) | 1991–1993 |
| Abulfaz Elchibey | leader of the Popular Front, president (elected 7 June 1992); left the capital in June 1993 | 1992–1993 |
| Surat Huseynov | commander of the military unit in Ganja (colonel); the Ganja events (4 June 1993); later prime minister | 1993–1994 |
The crisis of 1993: the return to power
In the spring of 1993 the situation at the front worsened: at the beginning of April Kalbajar was occupied (see “The First Karabakh War and the Khojaly genocide”). The armed formations were not fully subordinate to a single command, contradictions between the organs of power had deepened and the economy was in crisis.
On 4 June 1993 an armed clash took place in Ganja between the military unit commanded by Colonel Surat Huseynov and government forces (the Ganja events, sometimes also called the “Ganja uprising”). The forces loyal to the government were defeated and Surat Huseynov’s detachments set out towards Baku. The country faced the threat of civil war and of the collapse of the state. In this situation the leadership of the country invited Heydar Aliyev to Baku.
Interactive
On 15 June 1993 Heydar Aliyev was elected chairman of the Supreme Council (he had arrived in Baku on 9 June; some sources call the post “chairman of the National Assembly (Milli Majlis)”, while the textbooks use “chairman of the Supreme Council”). A few days later Elchibey left the capital for his native village of Kaleki in Nakhchivan, and on 24 June the powers of the president were transferred to Heydar Aliyev. This event is called National Salvation, and 15 June is celebrated as National Salvation Day. In the referendum of 29 August 1993 the great majority of voters expressed no confidence in Elchibey. On 3 October 1993, in a nationwide election, Heydar Aliyev was elected president (more than 98 per cent of the votes).
Political forces assess the events of 1993 differently: supporters of the Popular Front regard them as the removal of an elected president from power, while the textbooks call them National Salvation, which rescued the state from civil war and collapse.
Results
| Cause | Result |
|---|---|
| The Popular Front government’s defeats at the front and internal contradictions | The Ganja events and the threat of civil war |
| Heydar Aliyev’s Nakhchivan period and the founding of YAP | Heydar Aliyev invited to Baku, 15 June 1993: National Salvation |
| The no-confidence referendum (29 August) and the nationwide election (3 October) | legitimation of power, first steps towards political stability |
| The restoration of central power | state building in the following years (see “Building a law-based democratic state: the 1995 Constitution and reforms (1993–2003)”) |
After the Ganja events and National Salvation central power was restored. What followed – stopping the coup attempts of 1994 and 1995, the Constitution of 1995 and the reforms – is studied in the lesson “Building a law-based democratic state: the 1995 Constitution and reforms (1993–2003)”, and the ceasefire (12 May 1994) in “The First Karabakh War and the Khojaly genocide”.
| Feature | 15 June 1993 | 3 October 1993 |
|---|---|---|
| Post | chairman of the Supreme Council | president of the Republic of Azerbaijan |
| Method | a vote in parliament | nationwide election |
| Meaning | National Salvation (holiday: 15 June) | power confirmed by the vote of the people |
Interactive
- 1969–1982
Heydar Aliyev leads the Azerbaijan SSR
- 1987
Leaves his posts (October)
- 21 January 1990
Statement at the Permanent Mission of the Azerbaijan SSR in Moscow
- 17 November 1990
The tricolour in Nakhchivan
The Supreme Soviet of Nakhchivan removes “Soviet Socialist” from the name.
- 1991
Chairman of the Supreme Majlis of Nakhchivan
- 21 November 1992
Founding conference of the New Azerbaijan Party (Nakhchivan)
- April 1993
Occupation of Kalbajar
- 4 June 1993
The Ganja events
- 9 June 1993
Heydar Aliyev arrives in Baku
- 15 June 1993
National Salvation
Heydar Aliyev is elected chairman of the Supreme Council.
- 24 June 1993
The powers of the president are transferred to Heydar Aliyev
- 29 August 1993
No-confidence referendum on Elchibey
- 3 October 1993
Heydar Aliyev is elected president
On 15 June 1993 a session of parliament was held in Baku. The situation of the country was grave: in the west one district was already in enemy hands, in the country’s second largest city a military unit commanded by a colonel did not obey the orders of the capital, and there was no agreement between the head of state and the other branches of power. In these conditions the main question was how to hold the country together before citizens turned their weapons on each other.
The session held an election for the chairman of parliament. By the vote, an experienced politician who had led the republic for many years, had arrived in the capital a few days earlier and until then had lived in his native land, Nakhchivan, was elected to this post.
Source tasks
Problem
1) Identify the city and the politician not named in the text; name the post to which this politician was elected on 15 June 1993.
2) Explain one political and one military cause of the crisis described in the text.
3) Write two results of these events that are not stated in the text.
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Solution
2) Political cause: contradictions and lack of agreement between the head of state and the other branches of power. Military cause: losses at the front (the occupation of Kalbajar) and armed formations not obeying a single command. Marks: both explained – 1; only one – ½; causes named without explanation – ⅓.
3) Possible results: the transfer of the president’s powers to Heydar Aliyev (24 June 1993); the no-confidence referendum on Elchibey (29 August 1993); election as president in a nationwide vote (3 October 1993); the restoration of central power. Marks: two results – 1; one – ½; repeating information from the text – 0.
Coded item
Problem
Items that refer to the Nakhchivan period of Heydar Aliyev (1990–1992):
1. adoption of the tricolour in the autonomous republic (17 November 1990)
2. the Ganja events
3. election as chairman of the Supreme Majlis (1991)
4. the founding conference of the New Azerbaijan Party (21 November 1992)
5. election as president in a nationwide vote
A) 1, 2, 3 B) 1, 3, 4 C) 2, 3, 5 D) 3, 4, 5 E) 1, 2, 4
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Solution
Matching item
Problem
Match the date with its meaning:
1) 17 November 1990
2) 21 November 1992
3) 15 June 1993
a) the founding of YAP
b) National Salvation
c) adoption of the tricolour in Nakhchivan
A) 1-a, 2-b, 3-c B) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b C) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a D) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a E) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
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Solution
“Does not refer to” item
Problem
Does NOT refer to National Salvation (1993):
A) the Ganja events
B) Heydar Aliyev’s election as chairman of the Supreme Council
C) the no-confidence referendum on Elchibey
D) election as president in a nationwide vote
E) adoption of the Constitutional Act (18 October 1991)
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Solution
Remember
- 17 November 1990: at a session chaired by Heydar Aliyev, “Soviet Socialist” was removed from the name in Nakhchivan and the tricolour was adopted.
- In 1991 Heydar Aliyev was elected chairman of the Supreme Majlis of Nakhchivan; under blockade the defence of the autonomous republic was organised and stability was kept.
- 21 November 1992: the founding conference of the New Azerbaijan Party in Nakhchivan; chairman – Heydar Aliyev, ideology – Azerbaijanism.
- 4 June 1993: the Ganja events; 15 June 1993: Heydar Aliyev elected chairman of the Supreme Council – National Salvation.
- 29 August 1993: the no-confidence referendum on Elchibey; 3 October 1993: Heydar Aliyev elected president in a nationwide vote.