Constructing a Narrative about Deportation in Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia

Abstract. The deportation carried out in 1943 and 1944 occupies a key position in the memory politics of the Karachay-Balkarian people. The article discusses the existing difference in the forms of interaction with the memory of deportation in Karachay-Cherkessia and Kabardino-Balkaria. Based on the collected materials, a qualitative textual analysis was carried out as part of the case study strategy. The introduced concept of “mnemonic regime” and the new data obtained from the Internet portal “Caucasian Knot”, as well as from the official websites of the heads of the republics, make it possible to detect differences in approaches with the memory of deportation in the discursive and memorial spaces. The author comes to the conclusion that the presence of a strong counter-group (Kabardians), who dominate their own historical narrative in Kabardino-Balkaria make the difference. Unresolved territorial disputes and the incompleteness of the process of rehabilitation of the Balkar people intensify the confrontation. At the same time, the formation of the Karachay narrative takes place in a compromise environment. The interpretation of the ethnic past occupies a dominant position in Karachay-Cherkessia.

Keywords: memory politics, deportation, Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, mnemonic actors, public discourse, memorials.