Volume 03 Issue 04-2023
55
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
(ISSN
–
2771-2141)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
04
Pages:
55-60
SJIF
I
MPACT
FACTOR
(2021:
5.
993
)
(2022:
6.
015
)
(2023:
7.
164
)
OCLC
–
1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
ABSTRACT
It is known that during the former Soviet Union, the central government formed Uzbekistan as an economic colony,
a base for the supply of cheap raw materials for the “center”. The unscientific conclusion that “women’s issues were
solved” in the former Soviet Union led the Soviet government and the Communist Party to involve women in social
product
ion under the slogan of “economic liberation” and to make them the main productive force in society by using
their labor as cheap labor “made it possible”. It is known that during the former Soviet Union, the central government
formed Uzbekistan as an eco
nomic colony, a base for the supply of cheap raw materials for the “center”. The
unscientific conclusion that “women’s issues were solved” in the former Soviet Union led the Soviet government and
the Communist Party to involve women in social production un
der the slogan of “economic liberation” and to make
them the main productive force in society by using their labor as cheap labor “made it possible”.
KEYWORDS
Women, economy, Word War, Soviet Union, socialism.
INTRODUCTION
Widespread involvement of local women in production
was necessary, first of all, to strengthen the economic
base of the dictatorial regime. First of all, the main goal
of socialism was to develop its economy, and for this
Research Article
THE ROLE OF UZBEK WOMEN IN THE NATIONAL ECPNOMY DURING
THE SECOND WORD WAR
Submission Date:
April 20, 2023,
Accepted Date:
April 25, 2023,
Published Date:
April 30, 2023
Crossref doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/ajsshr/Volume03Issue04-11
Dilfuza Tukhtasinovna Sobirova
Associate Professor At The Department History Of Uzbekistan Of Andijan State University, Candidate Of
Historical Sciences, Andizhan Region, Republic Of Uzbekistan
Journal
Website:
https://theusajournals.
com/index.php/ajsshr
Copyright:
Original
content from this work
may be used under the
terms of the creative
commons
attributes
4.0 licence.
Volume 03 Issue 04-2023
56
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
(ISSN
–
2771-2141)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
04
Pages:
55-60
SJIF
I
MPACT
FACTOR
(2021:
5.
993
)
(2022:
6.
015
)
(2023:
7.
164
)
OCLC
–
1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
purpose it used women as a labor force and involved
them in social production. “In no countr
y in the world
except the socialist countries has the percentage of
working women been so high”[1.38]. No one was
interested in the natural subtlety of the female div,
its inability to perform heavy physical labor, and the
serious social consequences if this balance was
disturbed. This was because the dictatorial regime was
interested in their participation in production more
than the family, emphasizing that their full freedom
could not be ensured without the mass participation of
women in production. Therefore, it was considered
that “Economic independence is a key achievement in
ensuring women’s equality in society”, “the main task
in ensuring economic independence is to involve
women in social work” [2.22].
In the resolution of the Central Committee of the
Communist Party of Uzbekistan (b) of May 20, 1938 on
“O rabote sredi jenshchin” (Work among women)
[3.245] to involve women in industrial production by
improving their skills, improving their living conditions,
focused on recruitment to leadership positions.
Women of the Republic were routinely mobilized to
implement similar decisions taken by the party and the
government. The resolution of the Central Committee
of the Bolshevik Communist Party of Uzbekistan in
June 1940 “On measures to involve women in the
system of consumer cooperation in Uzbekistan” (“On
measures to involve women in the system of
consumer cooperation in
Uzbekistan”) [3.245] The primary task was to increase
their share in the total number of workers in consumer
cooperatives to at least 35% by involving at least 10,000
women, primarily indigenous women, in social
production [3.245]. In December 1940, the number of
women employed in the republican consumer
cooperative reached 8,863, of whom 3,135 were
indigenous women. Also, 482 women working in this
field were communist women and 1208 were
Komsomol girls [3.245]. The aim of the wider
involvement of communist and Komsomol women in
social production was to realize the Communist Party’s
political interests among women [4.109].Based on the
decision of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik
Communist Party of Uzbekistan of June 9, 1940, the
Council of the Komsomol Youth Union of Uzbekistan
(“On measures to involve women in the system of
consumer
cooperation in Uzbekistan”) made a special
decision to enroll in training courses [4.246]. In order
to ensure the implementation of the decision, after
completing one-month courses, 1,500 Komsomol
women were sent to districts and villages - 225 to
Tashkent region, 227 to Samarkand region, 525 to
Ferghana region, 300 to Bukhara region, 105 to
Khorezm region [3.246]. Thus, the large number of
demanded workers in the economic economy, which
played an important role in the construction of
Volume 03 Issue 04-2023
57
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
(ISSN
–
2771-2141)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
04
Pages:
55-60
SJIF
I
MPACT
FACTOR
(2021:
5.
993
)
(2022:
6.
015
)
(2023:
7.
164
)
OCLC
–
1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
socialism, was filled at the expense of the women of
the local nation. During the war against Nazi Germany,
which began on June 22, 1941, the participation and
share of Uzbek women in the national economy
reached a very high level. They took an active part in all
spheres of the national economy and also worked at
the expense of the men who went to the front.
Thousands of women left behind at the front shouted
“Everything for the front!”, “All mothers for the
defense of the Motherland!”, “Behind the front as in
the front!”, “Only forward and forward!” they showed
courage in labor with high responsibility in response to
their slogans. Since the second day of the war,
thousands of people have rallied in all enterprises,
mahallas and other public places in Tashkent,
expressing their readiness to defend the Motherland,
whether on the battlefield, at work or anywhere. On
June 26, 1941, a rally of thousands of people took place
at the Tashkent Textile Mill, during which they stated
that they had accepted the increased obligations. In
th
e city, “Work for yourself and your comrade who
went to the front!”. The slogan spread widely. On July
4, the women of the Oktyabr district of Tashkent took
part in the “Take the place of men in any
situation!”.“Towards the machine on the labor front!”
At the rally of 15 thousand people, an appeal was made
to the women of the republic. It read: “... Dear sisters!
Let’s take the place of our husbands, brothers, sisters
and sons next to the machine, behind the wheel of the
combine and in the field. ” In parti
cular, the call of
housewife Aysha Yusupova that we will contribute to
the victory on the front behind the front called on
many women to provide the defense of the
Motherland with their labor. Following these appeals
and invitations, the women of the capital began to
apply to the city party committee and state bodies for
sending and employment to the front. On June 22-26
alone, 1,551 women across the city applied to be sent
to the front, and on July 1-15, 7,508 women applied for
employment in the October district [7.8]. In July 1941,
the newspaper Pravda published an appeal to “all
women of the USSR” [8.39]. The essence of the appeal
was to mobilize women to work behind the front lines,
taking the place of men. After that, the movement to
train women in the
“men’s profession” in enterprises
and organizations of the republic gained momentum.
As a result of the initiative of the workers of the plant
“Kolkhozchi” in Samarkand to train women to work
directly in front of the machine, 35 housewives became
lathe operators and locksmiths [8.40]. Thus, the
proportion of women in the manufacturing enterprises
of the republic has been increasing year by year. If this
was 34 percent in 1940, it was 50 percent in 1942 and
63 percent in 1943 [8.41]. On July 3, 1941, at a rally of
thousands of Bukhara workers, women were also
called to take the place of men. 100 of the women of
Kagan Railway, who were the first to join the call, took
the place of men in a short period of time and played a
major role in the smooth continuation of the railway
Volume 03 Issue 04-2023
58
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
(ISSN
–
2771-2141)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
04
Pages:
55-60
SJIF
I
MPACT
FACTOR
(2021:
5.
993
)
(2022:
6.
015
)
(2023:
7.
164
)
OCLC
–
1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
service. The ranks of station attendants, female
machinists have expanded. By the end of 1941, more
than 5,000 women in the province had owned men’s
looms. By 1943, 82 percent of the industrial workers in
the province were women [9,331]. Thus, 1- and 6-month
short-term training courses for industry and
agriculture, 10-day seminars, and schools for women
were organized at technical colleges and MTS for the
training of women in mass professions. As a result,
103,000 women workers were trained during the three
years of the war [10.45]. They were involved in
production that required heavy physical labor. In
particular, 1,700 Uzbek women were employed at the
Angren coal mine [10, 246].In particular, the decree
ofthe Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of
February 13, 1942 further expanded the ranks of
workers at the expense of able-bodied women,
adolescents and pensioners [11.226]. Mass mobilization
of women to study men's professions has begun in the
country. In October 1941, 52.6% of the 2,624 workers at
the Tashselmash plant in Tashkent were women, while
in November, 7,620 women were trained as men at 42
industrial enterprises in Tashkent. If in 1940 the share
of women employed in the republic's industry was 34
per cent, due to the compulsory policy pursued by the
Soviet government and the Communist Party, women
accounted for 54.9 per cent by 1942 [11.226]. industrial
enterprises accounted for 63.5 percent of the labor
force [3,268] and played a crucial role in the national
economy. On October 15, 1941, 11,000 workers were
employed at 42 industrial enterprises in Tashkent,
8,000 of whom were women [12.7]. Uzbek women
activists such as J. Obidova and F. Yuldashbaeva have
been actively involved in organizing women’s
employment in industrial enterprises. However, the
center was not satisfied with the fact that the number
of indigenous women was “a minority” among those
trained for industrial production. Therefore, based on
the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of
the USSR of February 13, 1942, the X Plenum of the
Central Committee of the CPSU (b) on March 6, 1944,
the X Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU
came out. Following these measures, in early 1945,
more than 4,000 Uzbek women began working in
manufacturing enterprises in Tashkent [10.10]. Of the
308 enterprises evacuated from the center to Central
Asia during the war, 104 went to Uzbekistan; 55 of
them were located in Tashkent and Tashkent region
[10.10]. One of the 55 industrial enterprises relocated
to Tashkent is the Chkalov Aviation Plant, which has
been relocated near Moscow, and within three
months, due to great organizational work, the plant
has been staffed and started operating at full capacity.
Seventy percent of the total number of workers were
new hires, 362 of whom were Uzbek women [11.38].
The shortage of personnel, which arose as a result of
the departure of experienced workers to the front,
was filled in a very short period of time by the training
and education of newcomers, inexperienced and
unskilled workers, in various production occupations.
Volume 03 Issue 04-2023
59
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
(ISSN
–
2771-2141)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
04
Pages:
55-60
SJIF
I
MPACT
FACTOR
(2021:
5.
993
)
(2022:
6.
015
)
(2023:
7.
164
)
OCLC
–
1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
After the decision of the Bureau of the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of Uzbekistan in
September 1941 to transfer the city’s industrial
enterprises to the production of weapons, in 1942, 64
of the 137 enterprises in the city switched to military
production [3.7]. Further growth of military production
was associated with the introduction of new
technologies, increasing labor productivity and
overcoming enormous challenges. The administrative-
command management of the economy by the state
bodies reached its peak, especially during the war
years. The main task set by the authorities was to work
to the fullest, no matter how much the physical and
mental energy of the people was spent, without taking
into account the available opportunities, and to carry
out the plan. The heavy workload fell mainly on women
and young people. As a result of pressure and
oppression based on the Soviet method of command-
and control, women were forced to adapt to the
existing environment. They unknowingly aspired to be
the bulwarks of the socialist economy. Even during the
war years, efforts to empower women in production
continued through the organization of competitions.
In particular, Idrisova, an employee of the Tashkent
Textile Combine, exceeded the plan and managed to
gin 1 ton of cotton a month. M. Nosirova, a weaver,
worked with 80 looms at a time, exceeding the plan
[5.109], and A.Shumilova, an employee of the Andijan
factory named after Volodarsky, managed to fulfill the
daily norm by 3 and 3.5 times more [13.23]. On May 30,
1942, A.Buyanchina, an employee of the Andijan Engine
Repair Plant, called on his colleagues to increase
production efficiency, increasing the daily norm by
230-250%. Workers of the Andijan plant "Stroymashina"
also took the initiative to exceed the daily norm by 2-3
times [14.8]. At the Toshselmash plant G. Khalilova, H.
Sharipova, Reshetnikova, Pushkareva from Toshtram,
sisters Marufa, Mahnusa Gafurova from the Bolshevik
artel, Muhabbat Nosirova, Azamova and others from
the Textile Combine fulfilled their daily norms by 200%.
1233 women worked in the men’s profession. At the
Toshselmash plant alone, 230 women worked in the
ammunition plant. Established in June 1945 by the
Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR for the
workers of the front, “For valiant labor during the
Great Patriotic War. Representatives of women of
Tashkent were also awarded the medal 1941-
1945”
[14.7].
CONCLUSION
Through such incentives, competitions that were
artificially politically motivated led to the oppression of
women under hard labor. In fact, competitions were
just a form of forcing workers to work harder for the
state. Since the participation of women workers in the
competition was an assessment of their political
consciousness, the women workers were forced to
work overtime, to win the competition, without any
privilege. Competitions were an important factor in the
artificial acceleration of the realization of the Soviet
Volume 03 Issue 04-2023
60
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
(ISSN
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2771-2141)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
04
Pages:
55-60
SJIF
I
MPACT
FACTOR
(2021:
5.
993
)
(2022:
6.
015
)
(2023:
7.
164
)
OCLC
–
1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
goal by local women, and were an expression of the
Soviet pursuit of quantitative indicators in accordance
with the logic of “revolutionary
-
bureaucratic”
thinking. So in the years of World War II, in earlier
times, the hard work was on women. Uzbek women
have worked tirelessly in industry and agriculture,
making a worthy contribution to the victory over
fascism.
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