Food and social networks: keys for survival in post-Soviet Magadan

The collapse of the Soviet Union had a variety of impacts on Russia. During the communist era, high levels of government subsidy supported inefficient industry and overpopulated areas. Since the Soviet Union ended, the withdrawal of government support has resulted in rising poverty levels. Marginalised groups in this region struggle survive and need support to adapt to new livelihoods.

Research from Leicester University, UK, examines the livelihood strategies of one marginalised group in Magadan, a city in the north of former Soviet Union. Many people here are the survivors of political repression and Stalin’s notorious Gulag prison labour system. Upon their release, they were forbidden to return to their homelands. This made them socially and economically marginalised. Their situation became worse when the Soviet Union collapsed, and pensions in the far northeast of Russia fell to below 50 percent of the state-set minimum. Affordable state health care also disappeared, a crucial issue in a region where 78 percent of the population is ill.

The collapse of state pensions and health care meant that many people could no longer buy enough food to eat. Many responded by claiming small plots of land within walking distance of the city. Although temperatures often reach minus 45 degrees Celsius during winter months, it is possible to grow food during a ten to twelve week ‘summer’ period. This food is essential to ensure survival through the winter months. What little money is left from the monthly pension, after paying utility bills and buying medicines, is spent on flour, bread and oil.

Marginalised by the state government and often overlooked by research institute and local and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the Gulag survivors rely on each other. The collapse of the Soviet Union shattered many social networks in Magadan, but these are now being rebuilt. People living in Madagan use many survival strategies, and social networks, such as communication and the sharing of resources, are at the centre of all of them.

The research shows:

• During the growing season, plots of land become the focal point of social interaction. People share tools and labour. To counter the threat of theft, security networks have been formed to guard equipment. When crops are stolen, networks try to keep their members alive through the winter.
• Gulag survivors should have access to free health care and medicine, but in reality, they do not. Corruption is widespread across all sectors of government. The federal government is reluctant to fund the development of an effective social system in remote areas.

The main response of development donor organisations has been the World Bank’s Assisted Migration Scheme. This scheme aims to relocate marginalised people. However, the majority of the gulag survivors believe it would not be possible to recreate the social networks that ensure their daily survival in a new setting. Despite the harshness of their lives, they do not want to leave the region.

Presumptions about life in north Russia form the basis of development assistance in this region. Too little time has been spent discussing the issues with people experiencing the problems. Simple activities – such as providing seeds, increasing the availability of tools, or providing a permanent guard to protect their assets from theft – would dramatically improve lives, rather than relocation. The role of the state and NGOs should be to strengthen and support the survival strategies already in operation rather than trying to dismantle them.

Source(s):
‘Marginalised for a lifetime. The everyday experiences of gulag survivors in post-Soviet Magadan’, Geografiska Annaler: Series B, by J. Round, 2005 (please contact the author for a copy of the full paper)

id21 Research Highlight: 27 April 2005

Further Information:
John Round
Department of Geography
University of Leicester
Leicester
UK
LE1 7RH

Tel: +44 (0)116 252 3858
Fax: +44 (0)116 252 3854
Contact the contributor: j.round@le.ac.uk

Department of Geography, University of Leicester, UK

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