Advanced search
Publication Cover
Nationalities Papers
The Journal of Nationalism and Ethnicity
Volume 42, 2014 - Issue 5
Journal homepage
535
Views
9
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Articles

Political aspects of repatriation: Germany, Russia, Kazakhstan. A comparative analysis

Olga ZevelevaDepartment of Sociology, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, RussiaCorrespondence[email protected]
Pages 808-827 | Received 18 Aug 2013, Accepted 26 Jan 2014, Published online: 08 Jul 2014
 
Sample our Area Studies journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days

Abstract

This paper is based on a study which compares repatriation policies of Germany, Russia, and Kazakhstan. The choice of cases is based on a “most similar case design.” The Russian case results in unsuccessful and unsustainable repatriation, the German case exhibits a change from sustainable repatriation to a slow termination of the program, while the case of Kazakhstan is one of sustainable and relatively successful repatriation. The main argument of the paper is that in order for a repatriation program to be sustainable, the program must contain both a practical component and an ideological component. If a repatriation program lacks ideological backing which permeates other aspects of political life in a state, then the repatriation program grinds to a halt. If a repatriation program has ideological backing, but is rendered impractical and does not meet the economic, demographic and labor market needs of a state, then the further development of the program stops. The findings of this study merit further reflection on issues of changing national identities, on transnational migration pathways, and on the “post-Soviet condition” which has set the stage for all of the aforementioned processes and transformations.

Funding

The study was implemented in the framework of the Basic Research Program at the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE) in 2013.

Notes

1. This was passed in 1948 to help IDP's and POW's return home: Article 13, Universal Declaration of Human Rights. http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml#a13 [15.01.2013]; http://www.hrw.org/legacy/campaigns/israel/return/iccpr-rtr.htm#ft1 [15.01.2013]

2. “Titular nation” was a concept used in the Soviet Union to give rise to separate Socialist Republics. It referred to a dominant ethnic group in a republic. An ethnic group could be granted its own republic based on criteria such as population and density of settlement. The titular nationality of Belarus is Belorussians; in Uzbekistan the titular nationality is Uzbeks, for example. In the Law on Compatriots of the Russian Federation, a titular nation is defined as “a part of the population of a state, the nationality of which is defined by the official name of the state.” Article 2, Law on Compatriots Abroad. http://www.fms.gov.ru/programs/fmsuds/legal/details/39587/ [15.01.2013]

3. From the 1989 census onwards, the titular share of all Soviet successor states rose with the exception of Russia, where the share of Russians fell. Timothy Heleniak explains this trend with the fact of rapid migration of Russians from Russia in the 1990s and the lower birthrates of Russians relative to other ethnic groups within the country (Heleniak Citation2008, 53).

4. This paper is based on a larger body of research which traces migration and repatriation policies in historical perspective. Sources for this research are grouped into two categories. The first category of sources informs the policy-oriented and conceptual side of the study. This category is comprised almost entirely of official documents such as texts of constitutions, laws, amendments, texts of official government programs, and presidential decrees. The second category of sources informs the part of the study that handles societal integration of repatriates. This category of sources is comprised of official statistics provided by the three governments and supplemented by results of authoritative and methodologically sound sociological studies conducted in Germany, Kazakhstan, and Russia with regard to the experiences and integration issues of repatriates in each country.

5. Importantly, the “ideology” factor which this article claims as one of the factors leading to the success of a repatriation policy, is not synonymous with an “ethnic understanding of the state:” a migration policy can reflect ethnically oriented ideologies of nation-building, but this ethnic orientation may not be reflected in other policies of the state to make it coherent with larger political trends. “Ideology” can be a complex of foreign and domestic policy measures.

8. Under the rule of Stalin, this group was subject to repression and deportations because their German roots were perceived by the Soviet leadership as “threatening” during World War II.

11. Sometimes translated as “Law Dealing with the Clearing of War Consequences” (http://www.integration-eu.org/fileadmin/integration/images/Photos/Description_GermanRussian_BUPNET.pdf), “Law on Resolving Long-Term Effects of World War II” (http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/attachments/R4-LEG-DE.pdf), “Act Dealing with the Consequences of the War” (http://www.germanlawjournal.com/pdfs/Vol05/pdf_vol_05_no_07.pdf), “War Aftermath Compensation Law” (http://aei.pitt.edu/2288/1/002339_1.PDF), “War Consequences Conciliation Law” (Wolff, Stefan (2003): “The German Question Since 1919: An Analysis with Key Documents”) [15.01.2013]

12. This figure was then revised to 100,000 in the year 2000.

13. In its 1935 version of the citizenship law (Reichsbuergergesetz), the Nazi government exploited the law and amended it to an extreme version of a jus sanguinis definition of citizenship, creating a legal basis for mass ethnically-based repressions (Brubaker, Citation1992: 115).

14. After Kazakhstan gained independence from the Soviet Union, the country experienced a period of massive outmigration and falling birth rates. Between 1989 and 1999, the country experienced a population drop from 16.5 million people to less than 15 million people.

15. N.Nazarbayev na III Vsemirnom Kurultae Kazakhov v Astane Pereizbran Glavoi Vsemirnoi Assotsiatsii Kazakhov, 2005. Kazakhstanskaia Pravda, 30 Sept.

19. “Oralmans” repatriating outside the quota can receive help in finding a job, professional retraining courses, and Russian or Kazakh language courses. Repatriates within the quota are eligible for tariff-free transfer of belongings across borders, moving expenses compensation, a one-time startup allowance determined by the state, and a simplified track to receiving citizenship. http://www.zakon.kz/64134-vozvrashhenie-oralmanov-v-kazakhstan.html [15.01.2013]

33. Article 13, Universal Declaration of Human Rights. http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml#a13 [15.01.2013]

Log in via your institution

Access through your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

Restore content access

Restore content access for purchases made as guest
There are no offers available at the current time.
Supercharge Your Next Research Paper: Research and write your next paper with Jenni AI.

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.