Economic repression in the Soviet Union
Economic repression in the Soviet Union was carried out for ideological and political reasons.
The main types of Soviet economic repression are:
- Economic repression of social classes classified as antagonistic to the class of proletariat
- Economic repression of individuals which were ideological opponents
- Economic repression of emerging independence movements during the perestroika era
Economic repression of social classes
Eventually the social classes which were considered "enemies of the people" were dealt with by means of political repression, however in early periods of the Soviet history, undesirable classes, such as kulaks (rich peasants) were actively repressed by economical means, such as increased taxation and various restrictions on economic activities.
Economic repression of dissidents
Economic repression of Soviet dissidents was instrumental in suppression of dissent in the Soviet Union. Dissident intellectuals (dissident intelligentsia) were blacklisted from any work related to their skills, in particular, from publishing their works and giving lectures, which subsequently gave grounds to accusation in "parasitism". A notable example is Nobel Prize laureate Joseph Brodsky.
Economic repression of independence movements
Economic pressure against growing independence movements was attempted during perestroika in an attempt to PReVENT the collapse of the Soviet Union. For example, in 1990 Mikhail Gorbachev demanded Lithuania to pay $33 billion in the case of its secession. March 8, 1990
Another act of economic crackdown was economic blockade of the Baltic States, including [...] off oil and gas pipelines.