The Status of Turkish Subjects in The Soviet Union (1923-1953)
Sevindzh Alıeva, Pasha GuluzadeThe advance of the Soviet administration in the Caucasus and the establishment of its own system there appear to have taken place over a short time. However, the government needed many years to consolidate itself in the region. The process of imposing the new system on the Muslim Turkish society in particular was carried out more slowly and painfully. The effect of ties with Türkiye in terms of religion, language, culture, and history in this regard showed itself more clearly. The disruptions in progress regarding the process with the Republic of Türkiye revealing its own policies and attitudes, as well as individuals escaping from communist rule, also affected the approaches of the Soviet politicians of the period. In order to overcome all these problems, the Soviet administration did not refrain from implementing practices such as oppression, pursuit, exile, and the death penalty against people with ties to Türkiye or who were considered to be likely to make propaganda against the new administration. This study addresses these consistently with the aim of reaching a conclusion by applying the comparative historical method, which allows for establishing causal internal and external relations. The study benefits from the State Archive of Russian Federation, the Russian State Archive of Sociopolitical History, and Archives of the Office of Political Parties and Social Movements of the Presidency of Azerbaijan. Keywords: Soviet Administration, Muslim Turks, Disruption, Oppression, Pursuit, Exile
Türk Tebaasının Sovyetler Birliği'ndeki Durumu (1923-53)
Sevindzh Alıeva, Pasha GuluzadeSovyet yönetiminin Kafkasya`da ilerlemesi ve burada kendi sistemini kurması kısa süre zarfında gerçekleşmiş gibi gözükse de, bölgede hükümetin kendini pekiştirmesi uzun yıllar almıştır. Özellikle yeni sistemin Türk Müslüman toplumuna empoze edilmesi süreci daha yavaş ve acılı bir şekilde gerçekleştirilmiştir. Burada din, dil, kültür ve tarihi açıdan Türkiye ile olan bağların etkisi daha çok kendini belli etmiştir. Türkiye devletinin kendi politikası ve tutumunu ortaya koymasıyla sürecin ilerlemesindeki aksaklıklar ve bireylerin komünist yönetimden kaçmaya çalışması dönemin Sovyet politikacılarının da yaklaşımlarını etkilemiştir. Türkiye ile bağları olan veya olma ihtimali kabul edilen kişilerin yeni yönetime karşı propanganda yaptıkları düşünülmüştür. Tüm bu sorunların üstesinden gelmek için Sovyet yönetimi baskı, takip, sürgün ve ölümle cezalandırma gibi uygulamaları gerçekleştirmekten kaçınmamıştır. Bu çalışmada, söz konusu sorunlar tutarlı bir şekilde ele alınmakta, nedensel iç ve dış ilişkiler kurmaya izin veren karşılaştırmalı-tarihsel yöntem uygulanarak bir sonuca varmak amaçlanmaktadır. Söz konusu amaca varmak için özellikle Rusya Federasyonu Devlet Arşivi, Rusya Devlet Sosyo-Siyasi Tarih Arşivi, Azerbaycan Cumhurbaşkanlığı Siyasi Partiler ve Toplumsal Hareketler Dairesi Arşivleri`nden yararlanılmıştır.
The advance of the Soviet administration in the Caucasus and the establishment of its own system there appear to have taken place over a short time. However, the government took many years to consolidate itself in the region. The government’s imposition of the new system on the Muslim Turkish society was carried out more slowly and painfully, and one can see the effects of ties with Türkiye in this process in terms of religion, language, culture, and history.
During this time, the Soviet administration began to doubt even those who worked for it and chose to take the necessary measures. People who faced accusations such as being a traitor and enemy were punished before they could prove their innocence. In addition, those who had relations with the administration of the former Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and with Türkiye can be seen to have been kept in the foreground. For example, Haydar Tahirov was an agent for a spy organization according to intelligence information, which claimed he was in secret contact with the members of the Musavat party, the Turkish consulate in Baku that had operated in secret in the first years of the Soviet administration. At the same time, teachers who’d come from Türkiye were also suspected of having secret contact with Türkiye. This forced them to leave the country, as they were seen as potential opponents of the revolution and regarded as the main enemies of the new system.
The Soviet leadership explained the negative attitude they had toward Turkish subjects through the suspicion that they were anti-Soviet. Allegations were also made against the Turkish government for supporting Musavat members because they had taken refuge in Türkiye and were making anti-Soviet propaganda there. The Soviet government ordered the liquidation of Muslim organizations and also demanded the Azerbaijani politician Mehmed Amin Rasulzade be expelled from Türkiye.
When adding how the system had failed to fulfill its promises to this situation, the reactions in society were seen to increase even more. The people’s expectation of having a more prosperous life with the new administration became a problem when this expectation was not met. The heavy taxes and the failure of the land reforms prevented positive changes in people’s living conditions. Peasants had an important place in the production chain and stated having problems with the taxes, land management, land reforms, health, courts, and cooperatives. They voiced their complaints against the Communist Party, the Soviets, and their representatives. The peasants found the agricultural tax extremely heavy and unjust and also opposed the seizure of land they considered to be their own.
The Soviet administration’s attitude toward religion also caused negative reactions in the society. In particular, its attitude regarding religious life disturbed the Muslim Turks.. Mullahs were afraid to teach people religious knowledge because the Soviet government had specifically forbidden the teaching of God’s Laws in schools. The mullahs even avoided performing rituals and praying for the deceased at funerals.
During World War II, oppression and pursuits became more frequent. The government tried to secure itself by forcing Muslim Turks living on the border to migrate from their places. Frequent decrees regarding immigration were signed and promptly implemented to bring the front under full control. The government even gave awards to those who carried out these implementations well. During the years when Stalin implemented a policy of repression, tens of thousands of intellectuals, military personnel, scientists, writers, teachers, and clergy were exiled from Muslim Turkish lands.
This study deals with these problems consistently with the aim of reaching a conclusion by applying the comparative historical method, which allows internal and external causal relations to be established. This research has benefitted in particular from materials from the State Archive of the Russian Federation (GARF), The Russian State Archive of Socio-Political History (RGASPI), and the Archives of the Office of Political Parties and Social Movements of the Presidency of Azerbaijan (ARDSPIHA).
