“The people of Azerbaijan, one of the oldest peoples of mankind, occupy a special place in world history with their wisdom, desire to be independent, traditions of statehood, initiative to build and create, civilized way of life, as well as rich culture and literature. From certain periods of history to the present day, regardless of the source, all the information about our nation mentions only its heroism, freedom struggle, and the power of the states it owns.
The wisdom of our people is precisely that it has always left positive traces in history. The people united around the flag raised by him were the representatives of a just, humane and strong state. Although they were subjected to invasion and aggression in certain periods, they fought an honorable struggle and did not retreat from the struggle for their freedom. The children of our people fought tirelessly for independence. This struggle was manifested in all areas – from the squares to our literature. In 1918, our forefathers, who stayed true to their traditions, built an independent, democratic state with a thousand and one hardships and raised our three-color, moon-and-star flag to the skies of the Motherland. And this flag became the herald of the existence of our state, our national identity, and the path we are on.”
Sattar Mohbaliyev, chairman of the Azerbaijan Trade Unions Confederation (ATUC), member of the Milli Majlis, expressed these views to the mass media.
“Our flag, which gathered our people around itself, became a symbol of its struggle for independence and the ideology of freedom during the years of Soviet rule. Despite the pressures and repressions, our people did not forget the symbol of their statehood and existence, and kept it alive in the depths of their hearts with the highest love. Heydar Aliyev, who lived with the desire to see Azerbaijan independent and free, opened the path to independence for our people with his work, and always shed light on this holy path, succeeded in having the tricolor State Flag of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic approved as the State Flag of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic on November 17, 1990. No matter how difficult this decision was for that time, his love for his people, his homeland, and his desire to see it free could not deter the Great Leader from doing anything.
“Our three-color flag was also approved in the Constitution of Azerbaijan, prepared under the direct leadership of Great Leader Heydar Aliyev and adopted by a national referendum in 1995. Mr. Ilham Aliyev, the successful follower of our National Leader, always does important work in the direction of educating the young generation in the spirit of respect for state symbols and strengthening their sense of patriotism. The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan issued a decree on the establishment of the State Flag Day of the Republic of Azerbaijan on November 17, 2009, showing his respect for the state symbols. Thus, every year November 9 is celebrated with great enthusiasm as a holiday in our country as National Flag Day.