War & Peace: Police, Protests & Populism in Central Asia
War & Peace: Police, Protests & Populism in Central Asia
Podcast / Europe & Central Asia 1 minutes

War & Peace: Police, Protests & Populism in Central Asia

This week on War & Peace, post-Soviet security expert Dr Erica Marat joins Olga Oliker and Hugh Pope to discuss the drivers of anti-establishment protests and the policing thereof across Central Asia and globally. 

S2 Episode 12: Police, Protests & Populism in Central Asia

Central Asia is no exception to the protests that have emerged with renewed vigour on a global scale, a phenomenon made more visible against the backdrop of COVID-19 restrictions. 

Although the grievances driving them are context-specific, deep socio-political divisions and populist leaders are recurring themes, says Dr Erica Marat. A professor at the U.S. National Defense University and a post-Soviet security expert, she joins Olga and Hugh to discuss what connections can be drawn between collective action and protest-policing dynamics spanning the U.S., Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. 

Central Asian regimes bear the legacy of the Soviet era, and yet even the most autocratic among them are in constant adaptation, borrowing tactics from around the world to survive. Protest movements are evolving in the same way. Erica shares her findings about these trends, explaining the rise of ‘uncivil’ society, who the so-called “Kyrgyz Trump” is, and why Kazakhstan is a repatriation model for ISIS-affiliated citizens. 

Click here to listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

For more information:

Explore Crisis Group’s regional analysis on our Central Asia page 

Erica Marat, The Politics of Police Reform: Society against the State in Post-Soviet Countries, Oxford University Press

Contributors

Program Director, Europe and Central Asia
OlyaOliker
Former Director of Communications & Outreach
Hugh_Pope
Profile Image
Dr. Erica Marat
Professor at the National Defense University and post-Soviet security expert

Subscribe to Crisis Group’s Email Updates

Receive the best source of conflict analysis right in your inbox.