The April 9 tragedy refers to the events in Tbilisi, Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic on April 9, 1989, when an anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration was dispersed by the Soviet army, resulting in 21 deaths and hundreds of injuries.

The Soviet detachment, commanded by Colonel General Igor Rodionov, armed with military batons and spades, advanced on demonstrators moving along the central Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi. During the advance, the soldiers started to attack demonstrators with spades inflicting injuries both minor and serious to anyone who was struck.

CN and CS gas were used against the demonstrators; vomiting, respiratory problems and sudden paralyses of the nervous system were reported.

On March 31, 1991, Georgians voted overwhelmingly in favor of independence from the Soviet Union in a referendum. With a 90.5% turnout, approximately 99% voted in favor of independence. On April 9, the second anniversary of the tragedy, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Georgia proclaimed Georgian sovereignty and independence from the Soviet Union.

Georgian citizens and politicians were gathering at the April 9 memorial during the whole night to pay tribute to the victims of the tragedy.

The members of parliamentary oppositional "Christian-Democratic Movement" (CDM) Party arranged the symbolic march. They decorated the memorial with flowers and lit the candles.

The members of the ruling party paid tribute to their memory as well.

The important materials about the April 9 tragedy are preserved in the Archive of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia. The experts draw attention to the fact that the official documents did not contain the information that who made the decision about dispersal. Davit Aprasidze, Director of Archive says that that this fact indicates that the decision was made in Moscow.