Conflict, Unity and Fragmentation: Dissecting Local Politics in Kyrgyzstan

Abstract

Local political processes in the south of Kyrgyzstan in their nature is a contradictory phenomenon. At first glance, they can be characterized as democratic and diverse; however, due to particular integral elements of local communities, fragmentation and conflicts have become among the primary issues in local politics. Another assumption, which makes local politics in the south of Kyrgyzstan a complicated process, is that there are mainly two types of regions, one is the flat lands, which are mostly multiethnic; and the other, mountainous, which are mostly monoethnic in their composition. These specifications can differently affect local politics and might include several issues as patron-client networks, kinship and clannism, relatedness to particular ethnicity and electoral processes. The mentioned elements can serve as the main triggers for political conflict, fragmentation or to certain extent to the unity on both the local and national levels. In this context, this Thesis analyzes and provides new thoughts on the local political processes in Central Asian societies by examining the southern Aravan and Chon-Alay districts of Kyrgyzstan.