The Role of Islam in Politicization of Religious Discourse in Northern Caucasus

Abstract

The Northern Caucasus region has a big strategic importance in Russian geopolitical space. It arranges the spacial contact between Russia and Caucasian States and supports Russia’s positions in The Black Sea and Caspian Sea regions. Peace building and stability in the Northern Caucasus region is considered as an important factor of security system creation not only in the Caucasus, but in the whole Eurasian area.

After the collapse of the Russian Empire the people of the North Caucasus had a chance for reunion and creating the state based on the traditional national values. The republics of the North Caucasus recognized the Soviet government, but the main request from their side was the legalization of the Shariat and Adats /traditions/. Administrative reforms were held according to the political and ideological unifications, that were made on the next stage of the revolutionary changes. At the same time an ethno –territorial principle of the organizational and structural arrangement of the Northern Caucasus people were not violated.

The dismantle of the Soviet Union and the creation of new sovereign states were the vain conditions for the “Parade of Sovereignties”. These things were the main factors for the Northern Caucasus republics and their people to express a national consciousness and opportunity to show their own points of views. The analysis of the ideological constants and value modifications of the social-economic development of the North Caucasian Republics show that after 90-s of the last century, mental construction of the north Caucasians the dominant idea was based on the principals of ethnic nationalism and ethnic self-determination. That dominant idea was connected to the political, governmental and business- structural development of the region. Permanently this idea has been changed by the radical fundamental Islamic ideology, determined by the concept of Imamat – the Islamic theocratic State and has been considerably expanded the role of the modernized Islamic trends and its influences.

The presented article analyses the trends of religious influences on North Caucasian Republics and its indicators and parameters. The supporters of the modernized and radical Islam ideology preached a theoretical Islamic state, which would be based on social equality. Such egalitarian tendencies are considered as the main factor of the influence of the fundamental Islam. The article underlines the importance of the “Saint Islam” for the further social, moral, and value system development of North Caucasia as the alternative way against the Russian imperial conquerors and a symbol for the rebuilding of destroyed statehood, the basis and a fundamental part for building a social state. It played a major role in the development of the protest movements against Russia.