The Devil is in the Details: Drug-Trafficking and Corruption in Kazakhstan

Abstract

The central aim of this thesis was to study drug trafficking, drug related corruption and reactions to it in Kazakhstan. In Kazakhstan, where billions of foreign investment are at stake, active state measures have produced significant changes in the drug markets. Geographic proximity to Russia, as well as the strategic interests of foreign actors in the region, are shown to have affected the way Central Asian governments respond to drug trafficking. Kazakhstan’s key geographic position rendered it a bridge that connected regional drug capitals with Russian markets, and some drugs remained in Kazakhstan too. Drugs were mostly trafficked across legitimate trade routes connecting Central Asia and Russia. The structure of drug enterprises is placed under close examination. The empirical evidence is presented that drug trafficking enterprises in Kazakhstan can accurately be described as disorganised structures. Competitive advantage belonged to entrepreneurs who could link themselves with informal networks capable of exploiting the connection between production, transit and consuming countries. Such connections, or relational capital, seemed to be embedded into existing social relationships of actors. The measures taken against corrupt state officials resulted in thousands of criminal trials and imprisonments, and a recalculation by police officials nationwide about the costs and benefits of engaging in corrupt activities. The results were achieved mainly due to intensive enforcement of new legislation against corruption. However, this updated legislation still had a flavour of Soviet-style attitude towards drugs and could still be considered very strict in terms of international standards.