Abstract:

The study focuses on gender models and discourses among the women who were returned from “Islamic State” (IS/ISIS) to the Republic of Kazakhstan during special operation ‘Jusan’.

In post-Soviet Kazakhstan, monogamous secular marriage is legally established as a result of the Soviet system of gender relations which struggled with polygamy and kalym in 1920s Kazakhstan according to archival documents. The paper reveals the reactions of female-repatriates from IS, who came from secular monogamous families, to their new experience of gender relations based on polygamy, which they encountered in the "Islamic State". Four types of Kazakhstani women's attitudes towards polygamy within the framework of their life in the "Islamic State" can be identified. The first type is a negative attitude towards polygamy and a desire to get away from it even under the conditions of the "Islamic State". The second type is forced acceptance, but accompanied by internal discomfort and resentment. The third type is forced acceptance of polygamy because it is based on Islamic norms. The fourth type is a positive attitude towards polygamy and justification of its benefits for women.

The experience of gender relations gained in the "Islamic State" influenced them after returning. In particular, a significant proportion of women chose the path of marriage through nikah rather than civil marriage and a practicing Muslim as a husband. Women-representatives of the first and second discourse prefer monogamous marriage, while women who have accepted polygamy as a norm for themselves are ready and even prefer to marry a second and third wife.

Qualitative methodology was used as the research methodology, in particular interviews with female repatriates, as well as with psychologists and social workers of rehabilitation centers. The research was conducted in September-November 2020 as part of the study of Kazakhstan's experience of rehabilitation and reintegration of returnees from conflict zones.