Azernews.Az

By Aynur Jafarova

Every year, on May 28, millions of Azerbaijanis living in their country of origin and across the world celebrate the establishment of the first independent Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in 1918.

The establishment of the first democratic republic in the Muslim world marked a glorious page in Azerbaijan's history. The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic embraced European democratic values and the abundant cultural heritage of the East. All citizens of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic -- regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation -- were granted the right to vote. Thus, women gained suffrage for the first time in the Islamic world.

Azerbaijan, which has ancient statehood traditions, was the stronghold of the national liberation movement against the cruel colonial regime of the Russian tsarism.

The Azerbaijani people led the national liberation movement of all Turkic Muslim peoples of Russia under the command of leading intellectuals of the country.

Prominent lawyers Alimerdan bey Topchubashov, Shemsi Asadullayev, Ahmed bey Aghayev, Adil khan Ziyadkhanov, Ali bey Huseynzade and other intellectuals of Azerbaijan spearheaded the movement.

They could clearly see the problems facing the society and knew that the way out was democratic principles and the principles of freedom.

Mammad Amin Rasulzade, who was the founder of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, perhaps, was the brightest and the most prominent political figure during those times. Born and raised in a family of religious servants, he embraced education and progressive thinking at an early age. By 1918, he had become the ideological leader of the revolutionary nationalist movement in Azerbaijan.

The collapse of the Russian Empire was an historic window of opportunity for Azerbaijan to declare its independence after 100 years of Russian occupation. The Azerbaijani people were prepared to establish an independent state thanks to the mastering of the ancient traditions and culture of governance. The Azerbaijani intelligentsia was ready to create the most democratic republic that would ensure all human rights and civil liberties and would usher in a cardinal change compared to the absolute monarchy of Russia.

In February 1918, the three South Caucasus states formed the Transcaucasian Parliament as legislative authority in the region. However, the union did not last more than several months.

On May 28, 1918, Azerbaijan declared its independence and adopted the Declaration of Independence.

According to the Declaration of Independence, Azerbaijan, covering the South-East Transcaucasia, was declared as an independent state and the people of the independent Azerbaijan -- the source of the government.

Furthermore, it was declared that the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic would establish good relations with all nations, especially with neighboring countries, and ensure the political rights and citizenship to all of its residents regardless of their nationality, faith, class and gender.

The founders of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic declared Ganja, now Azerbaijan's second biggest city, as the capital. In June, the Azerbaijani parliament moved to the capital city. The main goal was to liberate Baku from the Soviet rule.

Baku, the capital of present-day Azerbaijan and the world's biggest oil producer at that time, was under the control of local Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were intellectually and militarily supported by Armenian and Russian residents of the city. With the help of the Ottomans, Baku was liberated from the Bolshevik rule in September 1918.

The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was the first parliamentary democracy with a republican form of governance in the Muslim world. The law on the establishment of the Azerbaijani parliament was adopted on November 19, 1918. The National Council decided to form a parliament of 120 members. It extended quotas to representatives of ethnic minorities in parliament. Armenians, Georgians, Russians and Jews living in the country enjoyed political freedoms meeting the standards of those times.

However, the Armenians, who opposed the independence of Azerbaijan, did not participate in the activity of the Parliament.

The Chairman of Parliament was Alimerdan bey Topchubashov, and his deputies were Hasan bey Aghayev and Mammadyusif Jafarov.

Furthermore, a Western-style cabinet of ministers was formed and Fatali Khan Khoyski became the first prime minister of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

The state power was granted to the Parliament. The judiciary system and courts gained full independence.

Domestic policy

The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was the first country in the Muslim world and also one of the first countries in the world to extend universal suffrage to women.

As a democratic country, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic conducted educational and land reforms in a very short period of time. The Baku State University was founded, schools, libraries and clubs were opened and a number of newspapers began to be published. Azerbaijani was declared the state language and special attention was paid to culture.

The national army was created in a short time as well. The Military Corps of Muslims turned into the independent Corps of Azerbaijan on June 26.

The flag of the independent Azerbaijan was adopted, with the image of a white crescent and a white eight-point star reflected on red background.

However, on November 9, the state flag of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was replaced with the image of a white crescent and eight-point star on a three-color flag.

Furthermore, social reforms were carried out. Legislative framework was created to provide land to farmers and protect the rights of workers. Educational programs were also launched to increase literacy.

International recognition

Along with conducting numerous reforms in every aspect of the society, the efforts of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic were focused on the achievement of international recognition.

In this regard, an Azerbaijani delegation participated in the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. By January 1920, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was de-facto recognized by the participants of the Paris Peace Conference.

After the meeting with Alimerdan bey Topchubashov, US President Woodrow Wilson was very impressed with the Azerbaijani delegation as they shared the same ideas and concepts regarding democracy and freedom. These were Western-educated, young, bright and intelligent people who realized that long-lasting independence could only mean adherence to democratic principles, human rights and support from other democratic countries.

Unfortunately, the first democratic republic lasted only 23 months. On April 27, 1920, the Red Army crossed the northern borders of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and invaded the country's capital city, Baku. Thus, the independent republic was replaced with the Soviet government in Azerbaijan.

The reason for the collapse of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was very complex. However, there were several factors that contributed to its fall. The absence of international support was the most deciding factor. Moreover, neither Azerbaijan nor the other two South Caucasus countries were able to secure membership in the League of Nations as world powers were unwilling to engage in confrontation with Russia over the small Caucasus countries. Furthermore, the Soviet army was too strong for an isolated Azerbaijan.

On May 28, 1953, Mammad Amin Rasulzade delivered his well-known speech to the Azerbaijani nation. The speech was broadcasted on Voice of America from Washington.

"On this day, the Azerbaijani nation was able to build its own country," Rasulzade said then. "Availing of its long and rich history, on this day, Azerbaijan gained a significant political achievement... By declaring its independence on May 28, 1918, the Azerbaijani nation made its historic dream a reality. Azerbaijan was able to apply the most important ideology and slogan of the times; every nation has the right to self-determination. Listening to the voices of the majority of its citizens, on this day, Azerbaijan declared its independence."

After the collapse of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic Azerbaijan remained as part of the Soviet Union until 1991 when it declared its independence again after 71 years of Soviet rule. Thus, modern Azerbaijan is the successor of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.