Weapons of the Wealthy

B. Radnitz Scott

Description

Mass mobilization is among the most dramatic and inspiring forces for political change. When ordinary citizens take to the streets in large numbers, they can undermine and even topple undemocratic governments, as the recent wave of peaceful uprisings in several postcommunist states has shown. However, investigation into how protests are organized can sometimes reveal that the origins and purpose of "people power" are not as they appear on the surface. In particular, protest can be used as an instrument of elite actors to advance their own interests rather than those of the masses.Weapons of the Wealthy focuses on the region of post-Soviet Central Asia to investigate the causes of elite-led protest. In nondemocratic states, economic and political opportunities can give rise to elites who are independent of the regime, yet vulnerable to expropriation and harassment from above. In conditions of political uncertainty, elites have an incentive to cultivate support in local communities, which elites can then wield as a "weapon" against a predatory regime. Scott Radnitz builds on his in-depth fieldwork and analysis of the spatial distribution of protests to demonstrate how Kyrgyzstan's post-independence development laid the groundwork for elite-led mobilization, whereas Uzbekistan's did not.Elites often have the wherewithal and the motivation to trigger protests, as is borne out by Radnitz's more than one hundred interviews with those who participated in, observed, or avoided protests. Even Kyrgyzstan's 2005 "Tulip Revolution," which brought about the first peaceful change of power in Central Asia since independence, should be understood as a strategic action of elites rather than as an expression of the popular will. This interpretation helps account for the undemocratic nature of the successor government and the 2010 uprising that toppled it. It also serves as a warning for scholars to look critically at bottom-up political change.

Sujets

• Histoire
• History of Asia
• Central Asia
• Activism

Informations

• Publié par: Cornell University Press
• Date de parution: 12 juillet 2012
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780801466175
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

WEAPONS OF THE WEALTHY

WEAPONSOF THE WEALTHY Predatory Regimes and EliteLed Protests in Central Asia

CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS

Scott Radnitz

ITHACA AND LONDON

Cornell University Press acknowledges receipt of a grant from the University of Washington, which aided in the publication of this book.

Copyright © 2010 by Cornell University

All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, address Cornell University Press, Sage House, 512 East State Street, Ithaca, New York 14850.

First published 2010 by Cornell University Press Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data Radnitz, Scott, 1978–  Weapons of the wealthy : predatory regimes and eliteled protests in Central Asia / Scott Radnitz.  p. cm.  Includes bibliographical references and index.  ISBN 9780801449536 (cloth : alk. paper)  1. Kyrgyzstan—Politics and government—1991– 2. Uzbekistan—Politics and government—1991– 3. Demonstrations—Kyrgyzstan. 4. Demonstrations— Uzbekistan. 5. Political participation—Kyrgyzstan. 6. Political participation— Uzbekistan. 7. Elite (Social sciences)—Kyrgyzstan. 8. Elite (Social sciences)— Uzbekistan. I. Title.  DK918.8757.R33 2010  958.4308'6—dc22 2010024646

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Cloth printing

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

List of Figures and Tables Acknowledgments Note on Transliteration

Introduction: Puzzles of People Power

1.  Institutional Uncertainty and EliteLed Mobilization 2.  The View from Below: Communities as Sites for Collective Action 3.  The View from Above: State Influences on Elite Opportunities 4. Linkages across Classes: The Development of Subversive Clientelism 5.  Mobilization in Rural Kyrgyzstan 6.  Elite Networks and the Tulip Revolution 7.  Assessing the Dynamics of Mobilization in Diverse Contexts

Conclusion: Political Economies, Hybrid Regimes, and Challenges to Democratization

Methodological Appendix Index

vii ix xiii

1

15

39 53

77 103 131

167

195

217 225

Figures and Tables

Figures 1.1. Mass mobilization infrastructure 2.1. Map of field sites 3.1. Mobilization structures of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan 5.1. Aksy Raion and its villages 6.1. caLojampronoitfosinKyrgyrotestsszat,n February–March 2005 6.2. Protest participation rates in Jalalabad Oblast, March 2005 7.1. ol,sdoowbiMozaliitnosrtcuuterwithlowpublicg economic opportunities, and low political openness 7.2. ,sdoogcliubpterademohwtiuterrtcunoszatibiliMo high economic opportunities, and low political openness 7.3. oMilibicblnoitairaupwol:hrewitalvgionnosazituterrtcu goods, variable economic and political opportunities

Tables 0.1. satornldeicEiicocitesotprdtelarenhpargomeddnast by oblast, Kyrgyzstan, 2005 0.2. risoncroapmosaCfse 2.1. sdleifChsetitscisforacaetir 2.2. imcoconacotniidnKyrsistanrgyzecDengnili and Uzbekistan during the transition period 4.1. Typologyofcilneetiltsivnestment 4.2. derPotciosrusferbvvesilicteenilms 4.3. tcepxeneulavdeubsofseivrsveFriiffestdesirenc clientelism in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan 5.1. tasblOsrowfodnItaciraigofbeinellbadalalaniJnos 5.2. scitsiretcarahCsyAkKy,yzrganstfollivsegani 6.1. preelectionprotaMojr0520,yK,stsenatszygr 6.2. roteonpKyrsts,ropaMojceittsle0025zsgyn,ta 7.1. ehroyngthetextendisesarofC

vii

32 41 55 109

143 162

170

171

171

4 13 41

44 85 93

95 107 108 138 140 170

Acknowledgments

When I started this project in 2001, Central Asia was not yet on the West’s “map.” It is somewhat more prominent now thanks to the war in Afghanistan, but it is still terra incognita to many, and it suffers from numerous misconceptions and stereotypes. I hope, with this book, to help readers gain a better understanding of Central Asia and to demonstrate how it can be incorporated fruitfully into comparative analysis. The research for and writing of this book took me across three continents. I would not have completed it without the indulgence and assistance of many peo ple at various stages. Prior to visiting Central Asia, I studied Uzbek with Gulnora Aminova. John Schoeberlein’s Central Asia and the Caucasus Working Group at Harvard University gave me insight into the region. My first visit to Uzbekistan was funded by the MellonMIT Program on NGOs and Forced Migration and a Foreign Languages and Area Studies grant. A later trip was funded by ACTR/ ACCELS. Ruslan Ikramov in Tashkent helped me improve my conversational Uzbek. John Payne and Marc DeVore inspired me to seize the yak by the horns. Along the way, Christoph Zuercher and Jan Koehler organized an ambitious collaborative project at the Free University in Berlin and made me a part of it. Christoph provided valuable feedback as I fumbled my way toward a manageable project and shared his wisdom from the Caucasus while I was in the field. Jan helped me to flesh out and refine my ideas, with a social anthropologist’s eye for the interesting and unexpected. The other researchers—Alexey Gunya, Bahodir Sidikov, Azamat Temirkulov, Gunda Wiegmann, and Jonathan Wheatley— provided many hours of intellectual stimulation in Berlin, Bishkek, and Baku. Julia Larycheva and Sarah Riese helped keep things running. The Volkswagen Foundation provided financial support while I was in Berlin and during two followup visits to Kyrgyzstan. During my year of fieldwork, the Fulbright program provided financial and logistical support in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. In the field, I benefited from the assistance of many people, only some of whom I can name here. In Osh, I was affiliated with the KyrgyzUzbek University. The Adyshev family generously pro vided shelter and food. My fieldwork and cultural education benefited immensely from the assistance of Almaz Kalet and Ilhom Melibaev. I have also enjoyed the help and support of Kiyal Tuksonbaev, Azizkin Soltobaev, Galina Nikolaevna, and Edil Baisalov in Bishkek; Aslambek Buriev in Tashkent; Saparbek Narkeev

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