Discerning the Determinants of Ethnic Repression in the Former Soviet Union
General Material Designation
[Thesis]
First Statement of Responsibility
Hodgin, David Tyler
Subsequent Statement of Responsibility
Willerton, John P.
.PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION, ETC
Name of Publisher, Distributor, etc.
The University of Arizona
Date of Publication, Distribution, etc.
2020
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Specific Material Designation and Extent of Item
97
DISSERTATION (THESIS) NOTE
Dissertation or thesis details and type of degree
M.A.
Body granting the degree
The University of Arizona
Text preceding or following the note
2020
SUMMARY OR ABSTRACT
Text of Note
The collapse of the Soviet Union brought undeniably drastic changes to the stability of the ethnic landscape across the Former Soviet Union (FSU). Consequently, in the effort to establish new national ideas, FSU states have largely promulgated policy centered around the promotion of the state's historical ethnic group. As a result, states have begun to repress ethnic groups under various pretexts. The onset of state sponsored ethnic repression has been relatively ignored in modern conflict scholarship. Accordingly, this project constructs a theoretical framework to analyze the determinants and consequences of repressing ethnic-Russians repression in post-Soviet Kazakhstan, Latvia, Estonia, and Ukraine. The ethnic make-up, strength of democratic institutions, and human rights track records of the Former Soviet Union (FSU) states provide preliminary evidence as to how the treatment of ethnic-Russians has evolved over the last thirty years. Current findings suggest, that even strong democratic institutions in the FSU may not protect ethnic groups from experiencing violations of physical integrity rights or linguistic and cultural repression. Additionally, the FSU states inability to reconcile their Soviet era grievances has led to the development of anti-Russian sentiments embedded into their national ideas.