Georgian PM pays tribute to April 9 victims on 33rd anniversary
"April 9 is a tragic date for us, when we once again pay tribute to the bright memory of patriots. We will never forget that present-day Georgia stands on the foundation of their achievement,” Garibashvili wrote. Photo: Government's press office
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Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili paid tribute to the memory of the victims of the April 9, 1989 tragedy on Saturday, marking the 33rd anniversary of the date.
The head of the Government released a statement in commemoration of the date when Soviet troops attacked peaceful protesters in Tbilisi, killing 21 people and injuring hundreds.
This sacrifice did not end in vain. This day determined the future not only for Georgia, but also for the other Soviet countries. [...] April 9 is a tragic date for us, when we once again pay tribute to the bright memory of patriots. We will never forget that present-day Georgia stands on the foundation of their achievement,” Garibashvili wrote.
Earlier today, the Georgian PM visited the April 9 memorial in front of the Parliament building in Tbilisi, placing a wreath in honour of the victims.
April 9 also marks the restoration of Georgia’s independence, as the Georgian legislative body passed the declaration of independence on the date in 1991, based on the results of a referendum on March 31 that year, where an overwhelming majority of Georgians voted for the country to secede from the Soviet Union.
Remembered as the day of national unity, April 9 is a public holiday in Georgia.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili has pardoned 15 inmates, including six Ukrainian citizens, on the 33rd anniversary of the April 9 tragedy in Tbilisi.
The Presidential Administration said the pardoned inmates, seven of whom are women, would leave the penitentiary institutions on Saturday.
Today Georgia remembers the people who lost their lives when Moscow-directed Soviet tanks dispersed a peaceful demonstration demanding independence for Georgia 32 years ago, killing 20 people in the process and injuring hundreds of others.Many of those killed on April 9, 1989 were in between the ages of 16 and 31.
Today Georgia remembers those who lost their lives when Moscow-directed Soviet tanks dispersed a peaceful demonstration demanding independence for Georgia 31 years ago, killing 21 people in the process and injuring hundreds of others.Many of those killed on 9 April 1989 were in between the ages of 16 and 31. For the first time in 31 years people have not gathered at the parliament building in Tbilisi.
Today Georgia remembers the people who died while Soviet troops dispersed a peaceful rally in support of Georgian independence in Tbilisi on April 9, 1989.
American, British, German, Lithuanian, Norwegian and Swedish diplomats paid homage to the victims of Georgia’s April 9 tragedy on Saturday, marking the 33rd anniversary since the violent dispersal of a peaceful pro-independence demonstration by Soviet troops in Tbilisi, killing 21 and injuring hundreds of civilians.