TBILISI -- Georgia is marking National Unity Day, the anniversary of the deadly dispersal by Soviet troops of pro-independence rallies in Tbilisi on April 9, 1989.
In the spring of 1989, Georgians took to the streets to demand independence from the Soviet Union. At the peak of the demonstrations, many thousands of people -- some of them on hunger strike -- gathered in central Tbilisi.
On April 9, Soviet Interior Ministry troops moved in to crush the peaceful protests, killing at least 20 people and leaving hundreds injured or poisoned by gas. The crackdown became one of the turning points in the final years of the Soviet Union.
Early on April 9, people in Tbilisi came to the memorial on Rustaveli Avenue to honor the victims of the violent dispersal.
Among those paying tribute was U.S. Ambassador Kelly Degnan, who laid flowers at the memorial located near the Georgian parliament.
In a statement coinciding with the commemoration, the U.S. Embassy in Georgia called Georgia's past with Russia "a history of broken promises, violence, and occupation."
"The brutality of the Russian army unfortunately spans centuries, and Georgia has its share of vivid nightmares at the hands of its aggressive neighbor. On April 9, 1989, this brutality was personified by Soviet troops, assaulting, and killing pro-independence demonstrators, creating painful memories," the statement said.
"However, Russian brutality does not define this day -- rather, April 9 belongs to Georgians who showed unprecedented courage and who wanted their country to be free and led Georgia forward toward independence."
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili used the 33rd anniversary to pardon 15 inmates, including six Ukrainian citizens.
The presidential administration said the pardoned inmates, seven of whom are women, would be released on April 9.
Two years after the deadly dispersal of the demonstrators in Tbilisi, on April 9, 1991, Georgia declared independence from the Soviet Union, which collapsed later that year in December.