Balihar Sanghera

Dr Balihar Sanghera is Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Director of Graduate Studies (Taught) at the University of Kent

Rentier capitalism and class warfare in Kazakhstan

Blame ‘free’ market reforms that benefit the rich and powerful at the expense of the working class for the country’s recent protests

By Balihar Sanghera and Elmira Satybaldieva

/ 14 Jan 2022

Rentier capitalism and class warfare in Kazakhstan

Global capitalism in Central Asia and competing economic imaginaries

For the US, Russia and China, Central Asia is a space of competing economic influences.

By Balihar Sanghera and Elmira Satybaldieva

/ 18 Jun 2018

Unmasking Central Asia's neoliberal judges

Despite claims of impartiality, judges in Central Asia often incorporate neoliberal economic and moral values into their judgements on illegal settlements.

By Balihar Sanghera

/ 6 Nov 2015

Economic dystopia in Kyrgyzstan

Hailed as a success story for liberal market reforms, Kyrgyzstan in fact provides an example of how the rentier class have become an integral part of the economy, and how democracy has given way to plutocracy.

By Balihar Sanghera

/ 10 Feb 2015

Wanted: Economic Equality to Mend Kyrgyzstan

Media reports of disturbances in Kyrgyzstan’s two main cities Bishkek and Osh focused on human rights and ethnicity. However, Balihar Sanghera suggests that the root cause lies in economic inequality.

By Balihar Sanghera

/ 27 Aug 2010

Why are Kyrgyzstan’s slum dwellers so angry?

If you want to understand what has motivated the uprising of Kyrgyzstan’s poor, you need look no further than the package of neo-liberal economic reforms imposed on the country by the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and World Trade Organisation, comments Balihar Sanghera

By Balihar Sanghera

/ 15 Jun 2010