Modernization Without Transformation: The De-Baization Campaign and Class Politics in Soviet Kazakhstan

Abstract

Given the complexity of the subject matter, this essay discusses the 1928 de-Baization campaign in Soviet Kazakhstan as a state project that intended to foster class rhetoric and consciousness but ultimately failed to achieve ideological transformation of pastoral nomads. Although ideology was not the only dimension of de-Baization, it appeared as a central aspect of the policy that shaped and encompassed its other aspects, including political, social, and economic objectives. Therefore, this research focuses primarily on the ideological framework of the campaign, analyzing the reaction of local Kazakhs to its implementation and the regime’s coercive mechanisms in cultivating compliance with state directives.