Central Asia Research Paper No. 3, October 2012
By Zamira Djabarova, Rut Perez-Studer, and Sheila Aminmadani
Project “Together on the Move” consists of two parts:
1. A traditional qualitative research that sought to identify existing organizing efforts among labor migrants from Tajikistan in Russia for the protection of their rights, and ways in which their efforts could be enhanced, specifically in Sochi. Being the location of the next Winter Olympics in 2014, Sochi is building massive structures within short period of time, with such pressures it is paramount that migrants’ rights are protected. The research covered circular migrants in Dushanbe and Soghd regions as well as active labor migrants in Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, and Sochi.
2. An action research, whose goal was to enhance opportunities for organizing community groups amongst Central Asian labor migrants in Russia, with a focus on citizens of Tajikistan, through the use of photography and graphic design. The project also aimed at developing opportunities where migrants, through using their photographs, could express their views, interests, and needs. The project recruited eight migrants who took photography classes over a course of three weeks, and who were then introduced to a number of non-profit and mass media organizations in order to promote their work.
