The Intellectual Disputes on the Establishment of a National Autonomous Republic in Kyrgyzstan in the Early Years of the Soviet Period

Abstract

In 1920s, in Turkestan the Bolsheviks initiated the foundation of a socialist model by radically altering the political, social and economic structure of Turkic peoples in the light of communist ideology. However, in implementing this model Moscow administration ignored or had not been able to assume that the Kyrgyz bureaucrats might have had different views in this context. As a result, a movement of disintegration had emerged within the Kyrgyzstan branch of the Communist Party, and Moscow had to deal with different opinions of two groups. In Kyrgyzstan, there had been a struggle between two groups led by Abdykerim Sydykov and Rakhmankul Khudaikulov. The struggle between these two groups was very harsh, which was especially intense about the project of Mountain Kyrgyz District (1922) and Kara Kyrgyz Autonomous District (1924). However, the direct representative of Moscow and First Secretary of the Kyrgyz Regional Communist Party Committee Mikhail Kamensky supported Khudaikulov's group and as a result, the supporters of A.Sydykov were dismissed from the upper state apparatus. Therefore, in 1925, A.Sydykov's group, which was composed of about thirty statesmen, who could not understand the real intention of Moscow, had to complain about it to Kremlin. This event is known as "The Letter of 30s" in history. However, "The Letter of 30s" was evaluated as a nationalist attempt by the higher state apparatus and the signatories of the letter were punished in different ways. The origins of the first Kyrgyz Soviet bureaucrats in both groups go back to the wealthy social group called as bourgeoisie, before 1917 October Revolution. Although they formed the "rightist" (Sydykov) and the "leftist" (Khudaikulov) groups, Kremlin, which always put its own interests on the first plan, did not intend to support both of them till the end. For this reason, in 1926, when it was time for R.Hudaykulov's group to be liquidated, they had been charged "for founding anti-Soviet 'Ur-Tokmok' organization" and most of the group members were imprisoned. In February 1927, in the city of Frunze (nowadays Bishkek) the "Ur-Tokmok case" was examined by a Special Court sent from Moscow. At the end of this case, Kyrgyz Regional Communist Party had been cleared of "foreign social elements" by Kremlin's decision, thus many bureaucrats of Kyrgyz origin were removed from party membership. Later, during the 1937-1938 Repression, most Kyrgyz politicians and statesmen, who participated in the "rightist" or the "leftist" groups lost their lives. In this article, the causes and consequences of these important political events in Kyrgyzstan, in the 1920s will be analyzed.