THE ROLE AND PLACE OF CRIMINAL LAW IN THE REPRESSIVE MACHINE OF THE SOVIET STATE IN KAZAKHSTAN

Abstract

Criminal justice, including the criminal law of the Soviet state, played a key role in its repressive machine, acting as one of the main instruments of control and suppression, not only punitive, but also preventive, in order to preserve the existing political system and combat dissent. This role was particularly evident in Kazakhstan, where large-scale repressions were carried out against the intelligentsia, clergy and many ethnic groups in the 1920s and 1950s. The purpose of this article is to find out how criminal law was used as a legal basis for repression and what features this process had in Kazakhstan.