Mismanagement and Misappropriation of Collective-cooperative Property in the Kolkhozes of Bashkiria between the Late 1960s and the First Half of the 1980s as a Systemic Phenomenon

Abstract

Introduction. The late 1960s and the first half of the 1980s saw a significant growth of the tendency for mismanagement and misappropriation of socialist property in the kolkhozes (collective farms) of Bashkiria. Such forms of antisocial and criminal behavior of the citizens appears to be a relevant subject. The aim of the present article is to analyze the issues of mismanagement and theft of socialist property in the kolkhozes of Bashkiria in the late 1960s — the first half of the 1980s. In this aspect, several lines of research have been identified: i) to analyze the forms of illegal use of funds and of material values of the farms, examining the phenomena in their dynamics; ii) to examine the work of the control and auditing bodies in the farms; and iii) to analyze a complex of measures taken by the party, state, and other supervisory bodies to counter the growth of economic crimes in kolkhozes. Sources. The archival documents from the National Archive of the Republic of Bashkortostan help to draw a detailed picture of the dynamics in the growth of mismanagement and stealing of collective farm property in Bashkiria, as well as of measures taken to counter these negative phenomena. Methods. The thematic chronological research method proved to be relevant for the analysis and identification of the issues related to the preservation of social property in the farms of Bashkiria, as well as of measures taken by the authorities to stop the facts of misappropriation and mismanagement. The principles of objectivity and historicism applied to a concrete historical situation made it possible to draw a non-partisan picture of the period in question. Results. The research has shown that during the period under study criminal mismanagement in the region took place in many collective farms, accompanied by numerous thefts of socialist property and this happened despite measures taken by the authorities. These crimes were often committed by representatives of the economic nomenclature, who had unlimited access to resources. Conclusion. Between the late 1960s and mid-1980s, the thefts of socialist property and mismanagement events in the collective farms of Bashkiria acquired an intractable systemic character, fostering antisocial sentiments in the rural section and society at large.

Keywords

• criminal mismanagement
• theft of socialist property
• economic crime
• bashkiria in the 1960s – mid 1980s