How can the countries in the region rethink their soviet past, decrease the impact of propaganda and find their identity? For three days, experts, researchers, activists and media specialists discussed the first steps of Central Asia towards decolonisation, and tools and solutions in Almaty.
Opening the event, Stephen Ramsey, Chief Operations Officer at Institute for War&Peace Reporting (IWPR), said that attempts to rethink the Soviet past and its consequences are worth considering as they will have impact on the life of the region in the future.
“The purpose of our conference is to consider the foreign propaganda in a wider context of decolonisation of Central Asian states. It will help the region understand its position in the world and move forward along the path of sovereign countries,” he said.
Despite the fact that de jure Central Asian states have been sovereign republics for more than 30 years, the impact of Russia on the region remains quite strong. Either in the sphere of culture, urbanism, economic dependence or propaganda.
The experts speaking at the conference noted that in Central Asia external opinion is often taken as more correct, while local is considered as less developed. This idea is supported by the recently held research of the Russian propaganda in Kyrgyzstan, which was presented during the event.
According to it, Russian media dominate in Kyrgyzstan, they are read and watched, they are trusted, and taken not as foreign ones, but as local outlets. The idea behind main narratives that they spread is that Russia is the key trade and economic partner and the guarantor of security, and that it is the centre attracting Central Asian states to it.
Similar colonial narratives can be traced in other countries of the region, too. And one of the ways to overcome this influence is the process of decolonisation. However, experts noted that it does not mean de-Russification, but rather finding its identity, But it requires participation of all parties – the civil sector, media and authorities, which must take part in order to change the situation.
Tatiana Trubacheva, editor of CABAR.asia, told how to influence the authorities via social media. She held a master class for participants and told about methods that help make texts catchy and viewable, commented and shared. This, in turn, helps to cause public response, convey information to the authorities and change their decisions more effectively. But the bigger the problem, the more time and effort it can require.
“If you see that a topic is very important and that the authorities can change it, you should create a PR campaign. You won’t win by just one text, one public. It can take years, or decades,” she said.
During panel sessions, representatives of the region discussed how the decolonisation process is taking place in Central Asia, how the civil society and the authorities react on it. In particular, in Kyrgyzstan, according to project coordinator of Kloop.kg Aizirek Almazbekova, the rhetoric of separation from Russia is not very developed. The examples are the prohibition of protests in the centre of Bishkek, including near the embassy of Russia. Also, according to her, there were several cases, when the authorities “copy-pasted” Russian laws.
“However, we see that more attention is paid to development of the Kyrgyz language. We see that decolonisation issues are being discussed now more than before,” Almazbekova said. “But these processes are not very widespread, we are on our way to it.”
See also: Colonialism As It Is. What about Russia and USSR?
The issue of local languages, which were suppressed and did not develop for a long time because of the dominating role of the Russian language, is very sensitive for Central Asia. Editor-in-chief of Steppe & World, philologist, author of Telegram channel “Kalkasyz kazak tili”, Nazgul Kozhabek, said that 2023 was declared the year of the Russian language in Kazakhstan. It is the language of most state bodies, which is then translated into Kazakh. This forced translation has a strong impact on the Kazakh language.
“The Kazakh language becomes literally the 100 per cent calque of the Russian language. It loses its identity. Now we write Kazakh words in the Russian language style because we use the Russian grammar,” she said.
See also: The Role of Transition of Kazakh Language from Cyrillic Alphabet in Decolonisation
Experts also discussed the process of rethinking of the soviet past through films, books, podcasts, architecture, etc. According to Asel Yeszhan, architect and co-founder of Urban Forum Kazakhstan, it is very important to involve the community into reflection and make decisions together.
“It should not be the matter of professionals behind closed doors and decision-making experts. It is a complex and even intuitive and therapeutic process, which could take us decades,” she said.
One of the tools of involvement of locals into decolonisation processes could be urban interventions.
“For example, you are used to walk past a wall every morning. And one day you see a bookcase there. A bookcase with books. And you understand what it is and why, but the bookcase triggers the processes in your head, which make you think. What kind of bookcase it is? What is it for? Can I take the book?” said Rada Valentina kyzy, activist and founder of the urban initiative “Peshcom” (Kyrgyzstan).
During her session about urbanism in terms of decolonisation, participants divided into groups and generated ideas of urban interventions in each of Central Asian states.
See also: We’ll Never Know What Our Towns Would Look Like Without Soviet Influence
But decolonisation implies work not only inside countries, but also at the international level. Timur Dadabaev, professor of international relations, director of special programme on Central Eurasia, University of Tsukuba, noted that the region needed to avoid enforcing concepts from the outside – both Western and Russian.
“To do it, we need to create the image that we know, which represents the Central Asian region,” the expert said.
The most successful model, according to Dadabaev, is to choose one sphere and succeed in it by all Central Asian states.
Participants and speakers discussed issues for three days. Many of them noted that the decolonisation topic is very relevant today and needs to be spoken about more often, and the ongoing processes must be reflected on and shared with each other.
“Such meetings are quite useful to see how your colleagues have succeeded given virtually the same conditions, the same authorities, the same restrictions. Nevertheless, they have done something and learned something more at their level, at their stage. Being the Uzbekistani, I would like to cooperate more with colleagues, so that we could reach our own conclusions based on our unique methods and tools but via our mutual reflection,” said Gulnara, art mediator based in Uzbekistan.
Aigul Omurkanova (Kyrgyzstan), lecturer at the chair of international journalism, KRSU, said that Kazakhstan has succeeded more than other countries and the initiative comes not from the authorities, but from the people – interesting architectural, urban, linguistic and cultural projects emerge.
“Most of researchers said that decolonisation is an attempt to look at yourself by yourself, not through someone else’s eyes. Without relying on the northern neighbour, or on the collective West, as we say. There were even calls to get away from the tyranny of established evaluations, and come to the independent search for the self, your own path, the attempt to look at oneself,” she said.
Читайте также: Memory As A Strong Tool of Return to Own Identity