This is what happened in Russia. As for Kyrgyzstan, several tens of thousands of migrants have flooded here from the Russian Federation. For the majority, this is a transit point for Georgia or Europe, but given that fewer and fewer visas are issued to Russians, there will certainly be those who want to stay here. But even without that, the massive influx of Russians has affected real estate prices. So for example, renting a house has become three or four times more expensive, and in some parts of Bishkek, the prices are the same as in Prague or Paris. Our landlords, seeing the far more solvent Russians, have begun to inflate prices, and even expel tenants altogether in order to rent [their properties] to Russians. I think this situation will improve after some time, when the Russians run out of that kind of money and either leave or stay here to work and live. There is no impact on the local labour market yet.
S: How would you see the ideal future in Kyrgyzstan?
BI: It depends on how far in the future. Ideally, in the far future, as the classic says, as part of the United Soviet Republic of All Peoples.
And if we talk about the near future, this would be Kyrgyzstan, pursuing a socialist economic policy. I do not think that we could become the new Switzerland or Singapore, but my comrades and I see ways in which Kyrgyzstan could become a more just place for life, combining elements of a planned economy, control of market mechanisms, and the socialization of public life, in the production and distribution of products and resources.
Translation: Rachael Horwitz
Editing: September collective