Difference between revisions of "Obshchak (Russia)"

While the criminal ''obshchak'' can be used for mutual aid and support to those who are ill, in police custody, or in the segregation unit of the prison, the spoils generally accrue to those at the top of the criminal ranks. Thus, the ''obshchak'' should be understood as a form of generalised reciprocity that locks those who practice it into consistent lines of action. This means it represents an investment by criminals who do not receive immediate benefits but who then have an interest in remaining within the criminal community to reap the long-term returns as they move up the ranks. As such, voluntary investments in the ''obshchak'' can be understood as a signal of commitment, solidarity and positive attitudes towards the criminal community<ref>Slade G. 2013. ''Reorganizing Crime: Mafia and Anti-Mafia in Post-Soviet Georgia''. Oxford: Oxford University Press</ref>. Investments are a measure of this commitment and can lead to promotion within the prison hierarchy or organized criminal group. However, for those who do not adhere to the inmates’ code that supports the ''obshchak'', it may be nothing more than a source of extortion.

While the criminal ''obshchak'' can be used for mutual aid and support to those who are ill, in police custody, or in the segregation unit of the prison, the spoils generally accrue to those at the top of the criminal ranks. Thus, the ''obshchak'' should be understood as a form of generalised reciprocity that locks those who practice it into consistent lines of action. This means it represents an investment by criminals who do not receive immediate benefits but who then have an interest in remaining within the criminal community to reap the long-term returns as they move up the ranks. As such, voluntary investments in the ''obshchak'' can be understood as a signal of commitment, solidarity and positive attitudes towards the criminal community<ref>Slade G. 2013. ''Reorganizing Crime: Mafia and Anti-Mafia in Post-Soviet Georgia''. Oxford: Oxford University Press</ref>. Investments are a measure of this commitment and can lead to promotion within the prison hierarchy or organized criminal group. However, for those who do not adhere to the inmates’ code that supports the ''obshchak'', it may be nothing more than a source of extortion.

The practice of pooling resources for mutual support and insurance against the worst is of course common in many informal settings. Paoli’s work on the Cosa Nostra and ‘''ndrangheta'' mafia groups in southern Italy shows similar common pooled resources<ref>Paoli, L. 2003. ''Mafia Brotherhoods. Organized Crime, Italian Style.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp.85-86.</ref>. As well as creating rational incentives for long-term individual commitment to a social group, such pooling of resources is often sacralised as surrender of the individual to a higher good – that of the collective. In post-Soviet Georgia, criminal materials confiscated by police included a document with rules concerning the use of ''obshchak'' <ref>Glonti, G. and Lobjanidze, G. 2004. ''Vory-v-zakone: Professional’naya Prestupnost’ v Gruzii.'' Tbilisi: American University Press. pp.118-119.</ref>. The pious language it uses is revealing: ‘The ''obshchak'' is a sacred place. It may only be governed by saintly people…These people must be absolutely honest to the thieves’ idea, dedicated in their heart and soul… Every keeper [of the ''obshchak'' – GS] must have from five to fifteen people in his care.’ <ref>''Ibid''</ref> Misuse of the ''obshchak'' and abuse by the keepers is a particular sin. This sacralisation of the community that the ''obshchak'' represents is by no means unique. Communal work and investments that inspire feelings of a higher calling to a collectivity is widespread in groups such as religious sects and utopian communities <ref>Kanter, R. M. 1972. ''Commitment and Community: Communes and Utopias in Sociological Perspective''. Cambridge: Harvard University Press</ref><ref>Tilly, C. 2005. ''Trust and Rule''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press</ref>.

The practice of pooling resources for mutual support and insurance against the worst is of course common in many informal settings. Paoli’s work on the Cosa Nostra and ‘''ndrangheta'' mafia groups in southern Italy shows similar common pooled resources<ref>Paoli, L. 2003. ''Mafia Brotherhoods. Organized Crime, Italian Style.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp.85-86.</ref>. As well as creating rational incentives for long-term individual commitment to a social group, such pooling of resources is often sacralised as surrender of the individual to a higher good – that of the collective. In post-Soviet Georgia, criminal materials confiscated by police included a document with rules concerning the use of ''obshchak'' <ref>Glonti, G. and Lobjanidze, G. 2004. ''Vory-v-zakone: Professional’naya Prestupnost’ v Gruzii.'' Tbilisi: American University Press. pp.118-119.</ref>. The pious language it uses is revealing: ‘The ''obshchak'' is a sacred place. It may only be governed by saintly people…These people must be absolutely honest to the thieves’ idea, dedicated in their heart and soul… Every keeper [of the ''obshchak'' – GS] must have from five to fifteen people in his care.’ <ref>''Ibid''</ref> Misuse of the ''obshchak'' and abuse by the keepers is a particular sin. This sacralisation of the community that the ''obshchak'' represents is by no means unique. Communal work and investments that inspire feelings of a higher calling to a collectivity is widespread in groups such as religious sects and utopian communities <ref>Kanter, R. M. 1972. ''Commitment and Community: Communes and Utopias in Sociological Perspective''. Cambridge: Harvard University Press</ref><ref>Tilly, C. 2005. ''Trust and Rule''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press</ref>.