Russia, Eurasia, and Eastern Europe remain an important hub for migration, with significant implications for both the societies in the region and migrants themselves. Migration can affect illiberal practices by contributing to political polarization, the adoption of restrictive immigration policies, the spread of xenophobia and discrimination, and economic competition.
Global Migration and Illiberalism in Russia, Eurasia, and Eastern Europe analyses how illiberal states manage migration to absorb resistance and how migration impacts the illiberal political agenda. With this dual perspective, the contributions provide an understanding of how migration becomes a pivotal factor in shaping political discourse, policies, and governance practices within the context of illiberal states.
Through an interdisciplinary approach, the studies on Russia, Central Asia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Hungary, Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine show how illiberalism shapes, influences, and enables states to take advantage of migration to secure and advance political goals. Simultaneously, migration processes can challenge authoritarianism and illiberal political goals by fostering diversity, networking, democracy promotion, and political empowerment.
Finally, the volume aims to make the conceptualization of illiberalism more relevant for the study of political and administrative practices and ways of thinking in this region. Political decisions are made in structures which are not only shaped by domestic considerations but are also deeply entwined with the globalized markets and the shadow economy that transcend national borders economically and culturally. Furthermore, the examination of illiberalism vis-à-vis migration in Russia, Eurasia, and Eastern Europe illustrates the global socio-political tendencies in many other parts of the world.
Anna-Liisa Heusala is a scholar in Russian and Eurasian studies at the Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki.
Kaarina Aitamurto is a lecturer at the Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki.
Sherzod Eraliev is a senior researcher at the Sociology of Law Department, Lund University, and a senior researcher at the Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki.
“There have been many books devoted to how the far right in Europe and the United States has been weaponizing immigration issues. Global Migration and Illiberalism in Russia, Eurasia, and Eastern Europe, however, is the first one to move the discussion to the postsocialist space and to the broader discussion on illiberalism as a regime type and a wide ideological category that is more than just far-right xenophobia and racism. The book explores the complex relationship between migration and illiberalism, going from the classic use of xenophobia by authorities to migrant communities navigating high level of corruption and patronal politics, to political emigration against authoritarian regimes.”
- Marlene Laruelle, Professor, The George Washington University
