Tajiks in St. Petersburg

The dynamics of the Tajik population in the city of St. Petersburg

During the great Patriotic war in 1941-1945, more than three hundred thousand soldiers voluntarily left the frontier from Tajikistan, many of whom took part in the defense of Leningrad from German invaders . Among them, Tajik infantrymen Shukur Ibragimov, Shukrullo Isaev, Abduvali and Yusufjon were especially distinguished ^[12] .

The majority of Tajik nationals live in St. Petersburg temporarily and are represented by migrant workers (cleaners, sellers, drivers, etc.) who live in difficult social conditions, especially if they are illegally in St. Petersburg. Most migrants live in communal apartments, basements or barracks without water and light ^{[13] [14]} . Also, migrant workers in most cases are forced to face cheating and abuse by employers ^[13] . The situation is aggravated by the fact that the majority of migrant workers have very little or no knowledge of the Russian language and thus have problems with documents, have poor contacts with employers and can easily be deceived. Uzbeks who are fluent in Russian are generally in a better position, but may still be racially motivated ^[4] . There is a social and cultural stratification between newly arrived migrants and the St. Petersburg Tajik diaspora, whose representatives have long lived in St. Petersburg, because of which the diaspora did not want to support migrant workers until recently, but made concessions after numerous complaints to the prosecutor’s office, deputies, and the governor and the president of the country ^[13] .

According to a survey of the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion , citizens of St. Petersburg, along with Muscovites, are least tolerant of Tajiks (after Caucasians): 23% of respondents are hostile to people of Tajik nationality ^{[15] [16]} .

Two Tajik national-cultural associations operate in the city: the St. Petersburg Friendship Society of Russian and Tajik Peoples “Somoniyon” ^[17] and the St. Petersburg Public Association of Tajiks “Ajam” ^[18] . In St. Petersburg, a monthly newspaper is published in the Tajik Khuroson, which is distributed to enterprises where Tajik brigades work ^[19] . Also, since 2011, the Turan newspaper began to be published in the city, aimed, in addition to Tajiks, to workers from Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan ^{[20] [21]} .

On May 6, 2014, on the Piskarevsky Memorial Cemetery Memorial Alley, a memorial plate was opened in honor of the soldiers of Tajikistan who died during the defense of Leningrad during the Great Patriotic War ^{[12] [22]} .