THE EDUCATION PENALTY

On September 1, 1919, the ADR Parliament took a bold and visionary step by passing the "Government-Sponsored Overseas Education for Hundred Students" law. This initiative was designed to play a crucial role in Azerbaijan's future socio-economic and cultural progress. The fact that the young independent state's legislators made this move amid political uncertainty, disrupted economic ties, social tension, and financial instability was nothing short of remarkable.

A Scholarship Program Derailed

In January 1920, young Azerbaijani students were sent off with great fanfare to study in Germany, France, Turkey, and Italy. However, their futures took a dramatic turn following the power shift in April of that same year. The new Azerbaijani Bolshevik government quickly revised the list of "independence students" and decided to cut funding for many of them, citing "political imprudence" as justification. By 1923, the new authorities had reduced the number of state-sponsored students abroad to just 65. Moreover, there were significant delays in disbursing scholarships.

As the People's Commissar of Education wrote to the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, Musabekov: "We have 65 scholarship holders remaining abroad. The cost of living in Germany is rising; 40 rubles is no longer sufficient. Students are requesting 60 rubles a month. The Collegium of the NKP has so far only increased the scholarship to 50 rubles."

Despite these challenges, many Azerbaijani students successfully completed their studies in Europe. However, not all chose to return to their homeland, which they had left as an independent nation but which had since fallen under communist rule. In 1925-1926, 56 young individuals returned to Azerbaijan with advanced degrees, primarily in engineering, and a newfound familiarity with European culture. They possessed cutting-edge scientific and technical knowledge and had gained practical experience at leading Western enterprises, making them highly valuable to the republic's national economy as it attempted to establish a socialist system.

"Studied abroad; Married a German woman."

One such "enemy of the people" — or more accurately, "enemy of the authorities" — was Mir Sadikh Sadikhov. Born into a modest family with a father who was a small merchant and a stay-at-home mother, Mir Sadikh first completed a six-year school program and then graduated from the Baku Technical School in 1917. His thirst for knowledge led him to the distant Siberian city of Tomsk, home to an Institute of Technology. In 1917, Sadikhov enrolled in the mining faculty at this institute. However, the Russian Civil War erupted, preventing him from completing his studies and forcing him to return home after just one year.

For about a year, Sadikhov worked in a car repair shop until he stumbled upon a newspaper announcement about the government's plan to send young Azerbaijanis to foreign universities. In 1920, he and six fellow countrymen became students at the Mining Academy in Freiburg, Germany. After completing his studies in 1925, Sadikhov remained in Germany for an additional five months of practical training at the suggestion of the Azerbaijani government. He returned to Azerbaijan in 1926, not alone but with his new wife, Hildegard Kistner.

Sadikhov, now a young mining specialist, was hired by Azneftekombinat but immediately caught the attention of state security—the Azerbaijan State Political Department (AzGPU). Two factors made him suspicious in their eyes: first, he had studied abroad; second, his wife was German. Either of these facts alone was enough to raise suspicions of "espionage on behalf of a foreign state." Having both was cause for serious concern.

In 1932, Azneftekombinat administration was instructed to send a group of specialists to the USA to learn advanced oil production methods. Sadikhov was included in this group. However, in October, a letter was sent to the head of the republic—Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan, Polonsky—signed by AzGPU chairman Frinovsky and deputy head of the Secret Political Department (SPO) of AzGPU Yagubov, objecting to Sadikhov's travel to the USA:

"Engineer Mir Sadikh Sadikhov—son of a large trader, former active member of the Musavat party and an active participant in the Armenian massacre in Baku in 1918—was sent by the Musavat government to study in Germany. While there, he actively participated in a White Guard group working against socialist authorities. An ardent chauvinist. He used his position as a candidate of the AzTsIK Central Executive Committee to protect relatives of deprived individuals from eviction from their flats according to existing directives. He joined the party solely for career advancement."

It's worth noting that nothing stated by AzGPU corresponds with reality. As mentioned earlier, Sadikhov came from a small merchant family; he was neither a member of AzTsIK (the Azerbaijan Central Executive Committee, then the legislative body of the country) nor affiliated with the Communist Party. Furthermore, he couldn't have participated in the March events of 1918 since he was studying in Tomsk at that time. The AzGPU resorted to falsehoods and slander to prevent Sadikhov's trip to the US.

The "characterization" of Sadikhov remained unchanged in an AzGPU document from 1933 titled "Report Note on the Economic and Political State of the Drilling Shop of the Stalin Field of Azneft," signed by AzGPU deputy chairman Shtep. Sadikhov was once again accused of having been "sent to Germany for studies under the Musavat government."

Black and White

In October 1937, despite notable achievements in his work, Sadikhov was dismissed from his role as head of the Kirov District Drilling Office without explanation. The relevant order indicated that he was relieved from duty due to possessing "compromising materials." Sadikhov was deeply troubled by this unexpected job loss, and it's easy to understand why. In July, Rzagulu Hasanov, someone he had studied with in Freiburg, had been arrested. Soon after, another fellow student named Jamil Alimuradbeyli was also arrested on charges of belonging to a counter-revolutionary Trotskyist organization. In 1937, before an individual could be arrested, they would typically be dismissed from their job and expelled from the Party.

After numerous appeals, including one directed at Mir Jafar Baghirov, head of the republic, Sadikhov found employment again, but not for long. On June 22, 1941, coinciding with Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union, a search and arrest warrant was issued for Sadikhov by the People's Commissariat for State Security (NKGB). The war with Germany renewed efforts to identify spies working for enemy states.

The basis for his search and arrest stemmed from what NKGB operative commissioner Lieutenant Samokhvalov described as "compromising materials received by NKGB concerning Mir Sadikh Sadikhov's criminal activities." On June 23, Sadikhov was arrested; on July 7, he faced charges of being an agent of foreign intelligence involved in espionage and promoting anti-Soviet agitation within his circle. His forced departure from studies at Tomsk Polytechnic Institute was interpreted as a refusal to combat bourgeois interests, while his return home was seen as an intent to serve under the "anti-popular Musavat government."

For nearly six months, investigators sought "confessions" from Sadikhov regarding any counter-revolutionary organizations or their members, or any espionage efforts on behalf of Germany; however, they obtained nothing substantial. He refrained from slandering anyone or speaking negatively about others. Despite this, investigators concluded that upon returning home after his studies in Germany, Sadikhov "harboured animosity towards Bolsheviks and Soviet authority policies and supported efforts to overthrow Soviet power in Azerbaijan and align with Turkey." He maintained his innocence regarding all charges against him; nonetheless, investigators recommended applying capital punishment — execution by firing squad — as his penalty. This decision was forwarded to Moscow for approval by the Special Conference under the People's Commissar of State Security of the USSR. Ultimately, his sentence was commuted to eight years of imprisonment instead of execution.

Sadikhov was to serve his sentence at a labour camp near Samara where prisoners worked on constructing military facilities. However, he likely never made it there, possibly dying en route from frostbite while confined in a ship's hold.

Following his verdict, his wife Hildegard Sadikhova was arrested alongside their ten-year-old daughter Mina — named after her grandmother — and deported to Kazakhstan. Mina grew up there, married, had two daughters, but passed away suddenly.

After 1956, Hildegard returned to Baku with her granddaughters and succeeded in having her husband rehabilitated. "It's impossible for an honest man to live in this country," she told her husband's relatives before taking her family back to Germany. This reflects the tragic fate endured by Sadikhov's family, whose primary "offense" was obtaining education abroad.