ECONOMIES OF CONFLICT: CONTEXT AND ROOT CAUSES OF INTERCOMMUNAL CONFLICTS IN KAZAKHSTAN

Abstract

Purpose of the research. This article aims to explore the validity of economic theories of conflict in explaining the root causes of intercommunal conflicts in Kazakhstan.Methodology. Such theoretical overview and qualitative methodological approach offer a more nuanced picture and constitutes an initial step in tailoring context-specific de-escalation strategies.Originality / value of the research. Through in-depth case study of Korday clashes in 2020, it challenges scholars who have attributed the roots of intercommunal conflict to lingering Soviet legacy and language politics. This literature takes communal grievances that attribute conflict to identity politics and/or rights for granted. They concentrate on discourse and take complaints at face value. Instead, this article explores applicability of the economic theories of «greed» and «relative deprivation» in conflict contexts.Findings.By using results of our fieldwork supported by research project of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, we show that «greed» hypothesis explains the predatory context on the local level, while the relative deprivation theory explains the perceptions of local population. The combination of these two conditions provided fertile ground for the collective grievances and served as the primary causes of conflict.