Authors

Aikerim Bektemirova¹;  ¹ University of Cambridge, UK

Discussion

Kazakhstan presents an intriguing case of a post-Soviet state navigating the challenges of transitioning from communism and state socialism to democracy and a market economy. This process involves not only systemic change but also significant continuities with the past, reflecting what Gramsci termed a passive revolution. Unlike a war of maneuver, which brings about abrupt, radical change by overthrowing the existing order, a passive revolution can be seen as a slow, controlled restructuring. It entails a gradual, top-down transformation where old structures are reshaped rather than dismantled, allowing elites to remain in power by carefully steering the process of change.

This paper explores how Kazakhstan’s post-Soviet transition embodies both change and continuity. Soviet hegemonic projects—such as the command economy and the state ideology of Marxism–Leninism—came under contestation with the fall of the USSR and were replaced by new neoliberal and nation-building (Kazakhization) agendas. However, these transformations did not occur through a decisive break but rather through a managed shift led by Soviet-era elites, including Nazarbayev and his inner circle, who retained control and imposed new forms of hegemony. Consequently, while Kazakhstan formally embraced a market economy and democratic reforms, many Soviet-era governance practices remain intact, including centralised government control over industries and one-party dominance.

Thus, Kazakhstan’s post-Soviet experience can be best understood as a hybrid process, blending continuity with change. Importantly, while no abrupt revolutionary break occurred, disruptive elements can emerge even within this managed transition. For example, the post-Soviet neoliberal reforms, which shifted wealth from the working class and welfare systems to private capital, deepened social inequalities and fostered a sense of injustice among many Kazakhstanis. This demonstrates that disruption does not always result from radical breaks but can unfold within a framework of gradual change, reflecting the complexity of real-world transformations.

As Kazakhstan navigates the demands of a market economy (economic project), struggles to build democratic institutions (political project), and engages in constructing a new national identity (identity-building project), the coexistence of disruption and continuity in its experience challenges simplified narratives of post-Soviet transformation. Rather than marking a clean break from its Soviet past, Kazakhstan’s transition illustrates how systemic change and continuity can coexist, with old structures persisting alongside new developments. This nuanced blend of adaptation, disruption, and persistence makes Kazakhstan an illustrative example of Gramsci’s concept of passive revolution, where transformation unfolds incrementally without fully dismantling the legacy of the past.