US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan visited the April 9 Memorial in front of the Georgian Parliament building in Tbilisi. She laid a wreath at the memorial and paid tribute to the memory of those who tragically died 32 years ago.

The US Embassy in Georgia published the Ambassador’s comment on the social network.

“1989 was a year characterized by courage, sacrifice and the commitment to freedom. From the fall of the Berlin Wall to the heroic stand of those in Tiananmen Square. The world watched as citizens stood up for democratic values. Across the Baltic States, 2 million people joined hands in solidarity. In Hungary, they opened the border to Austria to hold a picnic. And here in Georgia, on the 9th of April, twenty-one people paid the ultimate price while hundreds more were injured at the hands of the Soviet army as they peacefully demonstrated for freedom. While we remember those who sacrificed so that we might have a freer, more prosperous tomorrow, let’s also look forward with pride as we, Americans and Georgians, celebrate our shared values of independence, freedom and democracy,” Kelly Degnan declared.

On April 9, 1989, the Soviet Army brutally dispersed the anti-Soviet peaceful protest at the Parliament building in Tbilisi. Twenty-one peaceful protester was killed, hundreds were injured and poisoned by some unknown gas.

Two years later, on the same day, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Georgia proclaimed Georgian sovereignty and independence from the Soviet Union. April 9 is the Day of National Unity.