Despite Cultures Central Eurasia in Context Series Douglas Northrop, Editor Despite Cultures
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Despite Cultures Central Eurasia in Context Series Douglas Northrop, Editor Despite Cultures Early Soviet Rule in Tajikistan Botakoz Kassymbekova University of Pittsburgh Press Published by the University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260 Copyright © 2016, University of Pittsburgh Press All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America Printed on acid-free paper 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Kassymbekova, Botakoz, author. Title: Despite Cultures : Early Soviet Rule in Tajikistan / Botakoz Kassymbekova. Description: Pittsburgh, PA : University of Pittsburgh Press, [2016] | Series: Central Eurasia in Context Series | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2016039709 | ISBN 9780822964193 (paperback : acid-free paper) Subjects: LCSH: Tajikistan—Politics and government—20th century. | Nation- building—Tajikistan—History—20th century. | Local government—Tajikistan— History—20th century. | Communism—Tajikistan—History—20th century. | Political culture—Tajikistan—History—20th century. | Tajikistan—Relations— Soviet Union. | Soviet Union—Relations—Tajikistan. Classification: LCC DK928.85 .K37 2016 | DDC 958.608/42--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016039709 Cover art: Public show trials of basmachi, Tajikistan, 1926. Cover design by Alex Wolfe To Camilla Sharshekeeva and Saliha Mukasheva This map is based on the map of the Council of People’s Commissariat, 1929. CONTENTS Acknowledgments ix Chronology xiii Introduction 1 Chapter one An Open-Air Rule 19 Chapter two A Nation to Serve Empire 53 Chapter three Empire as a Personal Responsibility 71 Chapter four An Empire of Numbers 94 Chapter five An Empire of Chauvinists and Nationalists 111 viii CONTENTS Chapter six An Empire of Inner Struggles 136 Chapter seven An Empire of Liars 160 Chapter eight A Speechless Empire 179 Conclusion 199 Notes 205 Glossary 249 Bibliography 253 Index 267 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS adeleine Reeves, my mualimma and ustod, inspired my interest in social sciences and history when back in 2000 she taught Soviet M history and social anthropology in Kyrgyzstan. Her courses at the American University in Kyrgyzstan made me realize how little we, in Central Asia, knew about the region’s past and present. Her curiosity, orig- inality, empathy, enthusiasm, and passion for the region and social life gen- erally inspired and empowered a whole generation of students to undertake research and produce knowledge of and insights about societies in which we live. I would like to express my deep gratitude to Madeleine for her in- spiration and limitless intellectual and personal support. I also would like to thank Chad Thompson, William Hansen, John Heathershaw, Thomas Wood, Sarah Amsler, Julia Dröber, Ari Katz, and Dina Ginzburg-Selkoe for coming to Kyrgyzstan in the “wild 1990s” to talk about agency, anarchism, socialism, capitalism, East Timor, law, Spinoza, Foucault, Ibn Khaldoun, and, of course, structural linguistics. This work would not have been possible without the personal and intel- lectual support of Professor Jörg Baberowski at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Passionate and deeply analytical, Professor Baberowski proved to be the toughest and the most valuable critic throughout my years in ix x ACKNOWLEDGMENTS the department of Eastern European History in Berlin. I was honored to observe his thinking and performance as a historian and a theorist and to enjoy his full Doktovater support. I profited immensely from his advice and passionate encouragement in all my undertakings. The book is based on a doctoral dissertation at the Department of Eastern European History of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Colleagues and friends encouraged writing this work. Christian Te- ichmann kindly supported me (without my knowledge) with finalizing a research grant for this work. Always optimistic, he never warned of the difficulties of the write-up period; for that, I thank him. A special thank you goes to Felix Schnell, who spent hours reading, advising, arguing, and chatting with me. His immense support made the craft of history the most pleasurable undertaking. Robert Kindler, Benedikt Vogeler, Philine Alpen- burg, Daria Isachenko, and Sandra Grether offered support at various stag- es. My meetings with Ulrike Huhn, Stefan Wiese, and Benjamin Beuerle were some of the most intellectual and entertaining hours of my research period. Ulrike’s tea and cookies, whether from Berlin, Moscow, or Bremen, encouraged great debates over the role of the Soviet state in Russian church affairs, pogrom violence, Duma debates, and Tajik Sovietization. The group not only provided useful and critical comments but also friendships to last. Beate Giehler, a Tajikistan fellow, and Andreas Oberender were a kind company to struggle through the final stages of my writing. Sergei Abashin, Till Mostowlansky, Felix Schnell, Lisa Walker, and Franziska Exeler read the manuscript and offered valuable criticism. Ingeborg Baldauf, Thomas Loy, David Shearer, Shoshanna Keller, Claus Hansen, and Marianne Kamp commented on parts of the work at seminars, conferences, and lectures. David Shearer, Judith Beyer, and David Montgomery offered critical advice on publication. Conversations with Jane Burbank at the Wissenschaftskol- leg zu Berlin and Till Mostowlansky in Berlin helped to move away from a normative approach. Lauren Oyler proofread the manuscript. The Volkswagen Stiftung kindly funded the research project and in- sisted on closer project-based cooperation with colleagues in Tajikistan. Resulting teamwork and exchange with Sherali Rizoev, Shodiboi Atoev, Samira Rakhimova, and Hafiz Boboyorov on issues of nationalism and state building were critical for this study. I was honored to enjoy their warm hospitality, compassionate work, and belief in education, history, and phi- losophy. I would like to thank the VolkswagenStiftung and especially Dr. Wilhelm Krull, Dr. Wolfgang Levermann, and Dr. Mathias Nöllenburg for ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi their interest in and support of many important projects in the region. In Dushanbe I was honored to work at the Aga Khan Humanities Project (now the University of Central Asia), where students’ curiosity and strong desire to learn—as well as the collegial support of Sunatullo Jonboboev, Sharafat Mamadambarova, Yasmin Lodi, Zarangez Karimova, Viktoria Ivanenko, and Shiraz Jariani—helped me settle in Dushanbe and explore its history and present. The Project helped with archival access and supported with various research activities. Participation in the “Oral History of Civil War in Tajikistan,” led by Tim Epkenhans of the OSCE Academy in Bishkek, helped to connect Tajikistan’s Soviet past and its post-Soviet developments. I would also like to thank Fotima Abdurakhmanova of the Central State Archive in Dushanbe, who supported me immensely not only in finding material but also in sharing the last heater available in the archives when the –25°C temperatures were piercing. Archival staff in RGASPI and GARF offered critical suggestions for navigating in various collections. My dear Farsi teacher Riso Ismatulloev not only could read Turki and Farsi in vari- ous scripts and offered classes in calligraphy but also shared many personal memories of Soviet times and the war in Afghanistan, which gave a new dimension to my perception of the region. I would like to thank Douglas Northrop, the editor of the Central Eur- asia in Context Series; Peter Kracht of the University of Pittsburgh Press; and reviewers of the manuscript for suggesting and publishing it. I would like to thank Alex Wolfe of the University of Pittsburgh Press for designing the cover of the book and Leslie English for editing and suggesting crucial improvements to the text. Many friends and family made my life enjoyable during my research. Lilly Langbehn not only helped take care of my family while I was away at the archives, she was also confident when I was at my most doubtful. I would also like to thank Saleban Omar, Iftikar Akhmed, Wendy Werner, Lorena Alvarez, Makiko Ojiro, Anna Basanova, Marina Ozerova, Evgeniia Mardenskaia, and Shakhlo Sanginova for sharing many happy moments. In Moscow I was hosted by Antselevich Emma Davydovna, who kindly offered warm shelter after long (and full of terror) archival days. I dedicate this book to two Central Asian women who made Central Asia a better place. First, my grandmother, herself a jurist, survivor of the Kazakh famine, and natural optimist, who helped many people in need and taught me the lesson of life’s complexity. Second, Camilla Sharsheke- eva not only made it possible for Central Asians to study in a world-class xii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS university, full of intellectual vigor and spirit, but she also set an exam- ple that establishing such institutions in Central Asia is possible and, of course, necessary. Her commitment to Central Asia is exceptional. She helped many of us to follow our dreams. Last, but most of all, I thank Kai, David, and Eldar for dragging me out of the archives and insisting on exploring Tajikistan’s stunning nature, cheerfully crossing its highest mountain passes. All photographs reproduced in this book, unless mentioned otherwise, come from Tsentral'nyi Gosudarstvennyi Arkhiv Kinofoto i Fonodoku- mentov Respubliki Tadzhikistan (TsGAKFD RT, Central State Archive of Film, Photo, and Audio Documents of the Republic of Tajikistan). CHRONOLOGY 1864–1868 Russian conquest of Emirates of Kokand, Khiva, and Bukhara 1868 (1873) Bukharan agreement not