The “Far-Eastern Hectare”: The Ritualization of the Development Policy

Abstract

This article discusses the “Far-Eastern Hectare” program as a ritualized bureaucratic development policy. It addresses why such a project is presented as exemplary and successful. The authors use the analytical approach of ritualized action by Humphrey and Laidlaw, in which the search for the meaning of ritual action is abandoned in favor of focusing on the ritualization process as a mechanism of legitimizing power. Theoretically, the authors extend Ferguson’s argument about the development projects as anti-political machines, arguing that projects do not necessarily lead to the depoliticization of unjust resource allocation and issues of poverty. They show that, although formal indicators indicate the program’s success, it is far more correct to characterize it as a failure. Despite all the efforts, mass resettlement to the East and meaningful investment in the land have not been achieved. The demographic agenda has gradually receded, giving way to the idea of “living and working on your own land”. It is shown that the real practices of land development differ from those actively discussed and promoted by the operators. Analyzing the image of the Far East and Far-Easterners and the gap between the image of the program and real the practices of the land’s (under)development, the authors conclude that the program is turning into a bureaucratic ritual that legitimizes the presence of the central power in the periphery. The empirical data were obtained during field research conducted by the authors from 2016 in the southern regions of the Far East (interview, ethnography). The authors also draw on primary data from applications, open sources, and official documents.