„Ne tie“ lietuviai Sibire. Vėlyvojo sovietmečio darbo migracijos ir Kogalymo miesto statyba

LTStraipsnyje analizuojamos Baltijos šalių gyventojų, daugiausia lietuvių, darbo migracijos į Sovietų Sąjungos gilumą vėlyvuoju sovietmečiu. Remiantis nauja, anksčiau nepublikuota, rašytine ir fotomedžiaga plačiau aptariamas jų dalyvavimas kuriant Vakarų Sibiro Tiumenės srities Šiaurės naftos ir dujų komplekso infrastruktūrą bei statant Kogalymo miestą. Šio naftininkų miesto statyba analizuojama bendrame Šiaurės miestų urbanistikos ir urbanizacijos kontekste. [Iš leidinio]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Vakarų Sibiras; Tiumenės sritis; Kogalymas; Baltijos šalys (Baltic states); Lietuviai; Vėlyvasis sovietmetis; Western Siberia; Tyumen region; Kogalym; Baltic region; Lithuanians; Late Soviet period.

ENFor much of the Baltic population Siberia is primarily associated with tragic historic experiences, such as the exile of participants in the anti-tsarist uprisings of 1831 and 1863–1864, and the Stalinist deportations in particular, as well as the location of GULAGs. More positive images of this part of Russia are left on the side lines of historic consciousness or are lacking altogether. In this way, there is no room for a more neutral analysis of the processes that took place in the post-Stalinist period in the narratives dominated by the “struggle and suffering” motives, not to mention any considerations of the experience of cooperation, mutual assistance and basic human friendliness. Labour migration in the Soviet period remains rather overlooked even in the latest historiography coming from the Baltic countries, and in contemporary Russian offerings. Whereas the theme of Siberian urbanization determined by oil and natural gas extraction was rather thoroughly examined in the latter studies, the ethnic aspect of this process still remains a tabula rasa to researchers. Taking this into account, the aim of our research is to try to reconstruct the historic events related to the representatives from the Baltic republics, mostly Lithuanians, specifically, their participation in the creation of the Western Siberian oil-natural gas complex and the construction of Kogalym city in the 1980s–1990s.The study is based on various written and visual, archival and published material mostly related to the Baltic-built labourers’ settlements near the city of Kogalym, in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug (Yugra), urban and social history, and the activities of two Lithuanian companies – No. 12 of the Road Construction Board (Lith: KSV-12, Russian: ДСУ-12), which was founded under the Car and Road Transport Ministry to extend the road infrastructure in Western Siberia, and Construction Installation Platform No. 1 of the Kaunas Residential Construction Manufacturer. The main motive that brought the Balts to Western Siberia to build the city of Kogalym and create the region’s infrastructure was material and pragmatic: they would receive high salaries and could expect various concessions upon return. The Baltic workers who participated in the creation of the Tyumen oil and natural gas extraction complex sought to reconstruct the unique “models” of their faraway homelands within their broad territories, which the locals most likely sensed as “different” and “European”. Lithuanian specialists in Siberia successfully created an autonomous oasis of Lithuanian life and activity, which they not only nurtured but also tried to pass on (through common work and life, by maintaining regular contact with Lithuania, raising their children in the Lithuanian way at their own kindergarten and primary school, marking traditional celebrations, etc.). For other residents of Kogalym the “Balts” looked “different”, not like the rest of the people. The Lithuanian respondents highlighted that they “brought civilisation to these wild lands” (the first greenhouses and a swimming pool in the region).They are also characterised by a “heroic-pioneer” narrative, typically found in the narratives of other Western Siberian “conquerors”. Ultimately, it was the specific experience of living in the North that formed the collective “Siberian” identity among the Balts, which remained even after they had returned to their homelands. [From the publication]

• Baltic modernism : architecture and housing in Soviet Lithuania / Marija Drėmaitė. Berlin : DOM Publishers, 2017. 319 p.
• Organizuota Lietuvos gyventojų darbo migracija į Sovietų Sąjungą : XX a. šeštasis-devintasis dešimtmečiai / Vitalija Stravinskienė. Genocidas ir rezistencija. 2017, 2 (42), p. 69-85.
• Pirmtako šešėlyje : biografinė apybraiža apie Sovietų Lietuvos vadovą Petrą Griškevičių (1924-1987) / Vytautas Tininis. Vilnius : Lietuvos gyventojų genocido ir rezistencijos tyrimo centras, 2017. 247 p.