Socialistic Reconstruction of Mono-culture Colony : cotton growing and agricultural reform in Soviet Central Asia

Abstract

Central Asia in USSR was conquered by Russia 100 years ago and became a cotton mono-culture colony of the Russian Empire. Prior to the October Revolution this region supplied about half of cotton demanded by Russian textile industry, but had not its own textile industry at all. Directly after the Revolution, cotton production in Central Asia extremely declined, but restored and exceeded at the early period of the 30s the level of 1913 by far. In 1932, it satisfied almost all demand of textile industry of Soviet Union. Such increase of cotton production is connected with reorganization of social structure in Central Asia from semi-feudalistic system to socialistic and development of national economy of USSR as a whole. In a word, it constructed important part of socialistic development of USSR. This reorganization was carried out in the following order ; the first land=water reform (anti-colonial reform), the second land=water reform (revolutional-democratic reform), development of agricultural cooperatives, and lastly massive collectivisation (socialistic reform). Soviet Central Asia was a region of irrigated agriculture of mono-culture. The semi-feudalistic landowners had much influence, and there existed opposition between native peasants and Russian immigrants. Certainly these conditions are rather exceptional in Russia, but are common to contemporary "under-developed" countries. So the experience of Central Asian non-capitalistic development is very significant in the period of transition from capitalism to socialism. In the other hand, the collectivisation proves superiority of large-scale collective farm system, by the following of increase of agricultural production, especially cotton production.