POLICY OF THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE ON SETTLEMENT OF INTERPATRIMONIAL CONFLICTS OF KAZAKHS YOUNGER AND AVERAGE ZHUZIES

From the very beginning of the joining of Kazakhstan to the Russian empire in the early 30th of the 18 century the Russian State faced with numerous problems concerning governing its new subjects. Primarily this was the termination of enmity and mutual attacks among Kazakhs, Cossacks, Bashkirs, Kalmyks and boundary inhabitants. With the time in due course the Russian administration came to understand that one of the major factors to disrupt stability and peace in steppe was the conflicts between the Kazakhs themselves, caused by barymta and interpatrimonial collisions. Therefore the Russian administration started to search ways to terminate the suchlike conflicts. Two ways of the resolution of this problem were employed: 1) through the use of force (the establishment of criminal punishment for barymta, fortification and defensive lines building, sending military groups of Cossacks and the Bashkirs to steppe). But, in fact, toughening the punishments did not prevent or stop interpatrimonial collisions. 2) through the use of traditional government institutions of the Kazakh nomadic society, which had regard to Kazakh social organisation and mentality, etc. (for example, in judiciary and legal practice - proceedings of the case by national judges -biys and in accordance with according to the Kazakh common law; appealling to the leaders of antirussian revolts and pulling them to the government's side). However, the most successful and effective measure proved the organisation of congresses of sultans, biys. In exceptional circumstances the congresses were given right of reciprocal aquitment of murder, barymta, robbery and other grave offences which normally were within imperial jurisdiction. Besides, many colonial officials understood that stopping interpatrimonial conflicts was possible only in the peace ways with obligatory participation of Kazakhs in this process. The verdict was returned by the majority according to the consensus principle and, in a nomadic hierarchical society were taken as compulsory for all. The 1 congress was convened in Younger Zhuz in 1831 on the initiative of Orenburg Boundary Commission. The conventions of the 1846, 1847 and 1864 proved to be crucial in resolution of mutual claims and 'establishing long lasting friendship'.Eventually all cruel interpatrimonial collisions were stopped in Steppe by 1860. In many respects this success was achieved due to the fact that the Russian authorities used such a traditional institution of the Kazakh nomadic society as the congresses of the Kazakh nomadic nobility.

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