Kazym rebellion

Kazym rebellion
	Part of resistance to collectivization in the Soviet Union
	; An OGPU task force after an operation, March 1934
Date	1931–1934; Main stage:; 1933
Location	Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Result	Soviet victory, native resistance suppressed
Belligerents
Khanty; Nenets;	Soviet Union

The Kazym Rebellion (Russian: Казымское восстание) was a revolt by the Khanty and Nenets people of western Siberia^[1] against the collectivisation policies of the Soviet government in 1933. The revolt was named after the small town of Kazym in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. Some sources describe the events as "Kazym rebellions", listing a series of conflicts starting in 1931, with some half-hearted attempts at reconciliation from Soviet side, but culminating in forceful suppression in 1933 and repression in 1934.^[2]

Background

In the 1930s, the government established the new settlement of Kazym as a "cultural base". In theory, cultural bases were meant to entice the Khanty people into village life with the benefits of schools, hospitals, stores, and other communal conveniences. This effort to collectivise native peoples into manageable communities saw a great many Khanty abandoning their forest homes. Still others were relocated forcibly during the Joseph Stalin years. Additionally, compulsory attendance in boarding schools located in towns such as Kazym meant that Khanty children were removed from traditional homes and could be stopped from speaking their native tongue or following their cultural beliefs. However, in boarding school classes in Kazym, Khanty was the language of instruction.^[3]

This process went alongside the abduction and execution of traditional leaders who were labelled "kulaks" by the state. Eventually, there was a revolt in 1933 by many Khanty with support from the Forest Nenets, which was later known as the Kazym rebellion. The revolt began in the lake Numto area and spread to the town of Kazym. Within several weeks it was crushed by the Red Army, which was reported to have slaughtered dozens of villagers and burned their homes. This was the last known conflict between the Siberian tribes and Russia.^[4]

1931

Events started between Russian colonizers and Siberian natives 1931 when Siberian natives (Khanty & Nenets) undertook action to break in into boarding school in Kazym and take their children back from the Soviet State. Children were mostly collected using foreceful methods like under threat of violence or taking away their fishing equipment, needed for natives livelihood as the presence of state was mostly formal in remote regions. No known counter action was taken by the state.

1932

The resistance to the state did continue as per typical way for natives, they kept away from Soviet towns and villages and keeping as far away as possible from government officials. During the year some action was taken by the state and this resulted detaining few shamans (important people for natives) and imprisoning them. As this type resistance was not violent or destructive, the accusation against many imprisoned could be summed up as "wrong understanding of the world". In the totalitarian Soviet Union any action that could be understood as political in ways proscribed by the state would mean consequences. Legal formalization was secondary and sometimes made up.

1933

1933 spring the tensions rose. Communists decided to start exploiting the fishing resources on local Khanty & Nenets most holy "Lake of the God" (can be found on maps under Nenets name Num To or Khanty name Torum Lor). As per natives, this was unacceptable, their own laws and rules fishing in this lake was strictly forbidden. Due to action of natives, the Russian team, who arrived as per order of Soviet Communist party could not start their work with fishing. Assistance to the Russian team arrived from Kazym, Beryozovo, Khanty-Mansiysk and Yekaterinburg. The support included many bureaucrats, party and security officials who tried to persuade the natives to cooperate. This did not work as natives were not cooperative.

In December of 1933, one workteam was sent to Num To/Torum Lor. Female member of the team, Polina Schneider, representative of Communist party committee of Ural Oblast decided to ignore natives protests. She entered to the holy island, located in the middle of the lake and fired shots from firearm at the God figurines to prove that local natives faith is wrong. Also demeaning comments were made towards "dark people" (meaning local Khanty & Nenets). As per locals religion, no female could not touch the island. This level of disrespect created reaction from the natives. The natives present did detain the group members and local shamans did ask assistance from the gods via rituals. Godly answer was that five captured Russians had to be sacrificed and this was done by taking them on top of a hill, tying Reindeer lasso around their necks and strangling them to death.

1934

It's not known exactly when information reached to Beryozovo, where a group of soldiers was dispatched to punish the locals. Information of the following events differ, depending whether native witnesses and folklore or Soviet official documents are to be believed. Khanty & Nenets claim hundreds of deaths. They were raped, executed, bombed from the planes, used for target practice for grenades, being beaten with wooden sticks, drown to the icy holes or simply just dragged out to tundra without any food, appropriate clothing for winter or any means to survive (hunting and fishing equipment) and just left to die. As per witnesses and local folklore, only maximum 5 people survived from everyone who the Soviet soldiers did catch. Soviet documents from the events state that no inhumane action was taken by the soldiers. As per official approach at the time, Soviet soldiers were humane and did not do anything bad that would be worthy to record. 88 natives were detained and no prisoners were executed. Regardless the differences of the events taking place in 1934, the locals resistance against Soviet Union was suppressed.^[5]

In literature and cinema

Yeremey Aypin [ru], a Khanty writer, wrote a novel titled Our Lady in the blood-splattered snow (Russian: «Божья матерь в кровавых снегах»), which was published in 2002 and served as a basis for a movie named The Khanty Saga (Russian: "Сага о Хантах") produced in 2008.^[6] The novel is a fictionalized version of the rebellion.

References

^ KHANTS or Ostyaks
^ Казымские восстания 1931 - 1934 гг. - Kazym rebellions of 1931-1934.
^ Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer. The Tenacity of Ethnicity: A Siberian Saga in Global Perspective. p. 166.
^ Pimanov A.S., Piyukov A.N. Unrest of the indigenous population in Kazym in 1930-1933 // Yearbook of the Tyumen Regional Museum of Local Lore. 1998. - Tyumen, 1994.
^ https://www.sirp.ee/obiugrilaste-ja-samojeedide-olematud-sojad
^ Актер Русского театра снялся в киносаге о хантах^{[permanent dead link]}- 08.12.2008, Finno-Ugor national center.

External links

The Ugric Branch

[1] KHANTS or Ostyaks

[hrono_ru-2] Казымские восстания 1931 - 1934 гг. - Kazym rebellions of 1931-1934.

[3] Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer. The Tenacity of Ethnicity: A Siberian Saga in Global Perspective. p. 166.

[4] Pimanov A.S., Piyukov A.N. Unrest of the indigenous population in Kazym in 1930-1933 // Yearbook of the Tyumen Regional Museum of Local Lore. 1998. - Tyumen, 1994.

[5] ttps://www.sirp.ee/obiugrilaste-ja-samojeedide-olematud-sojad

[movie1-6] Актер Русского театра снялся в киносаге о хантах^{[permanent dead link]}- 08.12.2008, Finno-Ugor national center.

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