The New Stage of The Fight Against Organized Crime In
Russia
Victor Shabalin
J.L. Albini
R.E. Rogers
Abstract
In the summer of 1994, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) estimated that
25% of the Russian gross national income was derived from organized criminal activities.
The MVD also believed that 5600 criminal groups were involved primarily in capital/money
laundering, the drug business, and extortion. Consequently, President Yeltsin issued the
Decree: "On The Urgent Measures To Defend The Population Against Gangsterism And
Other Kinds Of Organized Crime," on June 14. This Decree suspended many of the
existing laws that protected individual rights. The measure was controversial, but it was
supported by the majority of the Russian people as a necessary evil to fight organized
crime. The Russian criminal justice experts believe these laws will help control the
economic criminalization caused by organized criminal associations and will encourage the
development of honest business. They also hope that this Decree will mark the turning
point in the fight against organized crime.
In the summer of 1994, the fight against organized crime has entered a new stage. At
this time the magnitude of criminal activity has become very threatening to our society.
If in 1993, the shadow economy, which is the material basis of organized crime, covered
25% of the gross national income (44-45 trillion rubles), then in 1994 this figure
might reach 280 trillion rubles.
The tempo of economic criminalization is far ahead of all other economic indices.
Government and academic criminal justice experts believe there are 5600 stable groups that
are involved in a wide range of criminal activities. Russian criminal associations are
increasingly more active abroad. According to the FBI data, announced by its director,
Lewis Freeh, twenty four groups act abroad. Their main activities are capital/money
laundering, the drug business and extortion.
Organized crime has become the most important political problem in Russia. It threatens
to damage the unstable political, economic, and social systems by means of corruption and
violence. It has created a situation where there is no guarantee of the Russian citizen's
personal safety.
At the same time, the judicial basis of the fight against especially dangerous crimes
has become dated long ago. The Russian criminal justice system doesn't even have
definitions of organized crime and associations that reflect the new kinds of production,
forms of property and capital, which came to being in Russia during the last five years.
This was the determining factor that induced President Yeltsin to issue the Decree
titled: "On The Urgent Measures To Defend The Population Against Gangsterism And
Other Kinds Of Organized Crime," on June 14, 1994. Compared to the existing criminal
justice and legal procedures, the Decree aimed at the protection of the life, health and
property interests of citizens. It also introduced some strict measures towards organized
criminal associations and their members:
At the same time, the Decree mandates that the afore-mentioned measures are only valid
until the Federal Meeting of the Russian Parliament (its purpose will be to draft
legislation to fight organized crime) adopts corresponding laws, and are under the control
of the Public Prosecutor's Office.
President Yeltsin's Decree precipitated polemical debate in the Russian society. It
caused heated discussions among lawyers, political scientists and the political elite.
Many of them think that the Decree contradicts the Constitution and violates a number of
rights and freedoms of the citizens. The majority of the commercial structures and a
significant part of the press have a negative attitude towards the Decree. The
parliamentary faction "Choice of Russia" led by Gaidar, former economic adviser
to Yeltsin, vehemently expressed the opinion to abolish it. Though there are many
supporters of the Decree, one of the extreme positions is taken by Zhirinovsky's
parliamentary faction, the Liberal-Democratic Party. The L.D.P considers the Decree too
mild and demands that the army participate in the fight against organized crime by using
summary execution to shoot the mob leaders and the use of field-court marshal to purge the
corrupt members of the MVD (national police). The leaders of the law enforcement bodies
and their representatives of the local administrations consider the Decree up-to-date.
Using sociological research data, many well-known and respected lawyers support the
Decree and believe that the personal safety of the citizens of Russia takes precedence
over their abstract civil liberties. Many Russians consider that the limitations of some
rights, of those suspected and accused of crimes committed by organized groups, are
largely compensated by the increase in the guarantee of the right to life and safety for
the majority of population. The ordinary people of Russia have reacted positively to the
Decree and the measures needed to implement it.
In addition, supporters of the Decree refer to the fact that many points of this
document are reproduced in the text of the Bill "On the Fight with Organized
Crime," which is now being heard at the Federal Meeting of the Russian Parliament.
The issuing of the Decree has filled the juridical vacuum, formed between the old and new
laws and stimulates the Parliament to enact new criminal justice legislation.
The aforementioned Bill "On the Fight with Organized Crime" is the result of
the great work done by a creative group of lawyers with Professor Asalia Dalgova,
President of The Russian Criminological Association, as its leader. In short, the main
statements of the law consist of sixty-two items as follows:
- Particular measures of the fight with organized crime are taken by special detachments.
Other detachments will use the resources which are at their disposal.
- There are three main levels of organized crime: group, organization and association;
In the Committee's arsenal, there are some non-traditional executive inquiry measures,
which cannot be found in the existing laws. Among them are infiltration into criminal
communities and the control, delivery, creation and use of "legendary"
enterprises and etc. The complex measures implemented to fight the laundering of criminal
capital occupies a particular place in the Bill.
The Law on Organized Crime is still under discussion, nevertheless, a great number of
statements appeared in the press and stated that the measures provided by the law are
"draconian." However, the law has been written by using the experience of the
international community in its fight with organized crime, and on the whole, corresponds
to those strict but necessary measures used towards organized crime in all civilized
countries. In this respect, it's worth mentioning the Moscow citation of the FBI Director,
L.Freeh: that organized crime in Russia threatens not only the safety of this country but
the safety of the U.S.A. In addition, he doesn't consider the Decree of President Yeltsin
as an extreme violation of human rights.
One can hypothesize about the possible scenarios that may result from the
implementation of President Yeltsin's Decree and the introduction of the Law On Organized
Crime in the near future:
Without delay, laws should be adopted to fight organized crime in the areas of
corruption, illicit criminal incomes, and laundering of capital/money, the criminal
distortion of privatization, and others. These laws would help control the economic
criminalization caused by organized criminal associations and would protect and encourage
new honest commercial enterprises. In this case, the fight against organized crime is
becoming a part of the reform and recovery process of the Russian society and might be
effective. If these laws are effective, organized crime little by little will gravitate to
its traditional spheres (drugs, prostitution, pornography, gambling, etc.), where
efficient criminal justice control can be taken. Time will show what scenario will develop
from the fight against organized crime in Russia.
EPILOGUE
As of September 1995, President Yeltsin's Decree, "On The Urgent Measures to
Defend The Population Against Gangsterism and Other Kinds of Organized Crime," is
still the law in the Russian Federation. However, because of the continued deterioration
of Russia's social and economic infrastructures, the Decree unfortunately has not produced
the desired effects in combating organized crime that its proponents had optimistically
predicted.
REFERENCES
Shabalin, V. (1995) Interview with co-authors J.L. Albini and R.E. Rogers
Colonel, Professor Victor A. Shabalin is a Professor of Political Science at the
Khabarovsk Graduate Militia College in Khabarovsk, Russia. Professor Shabalin is a member
of the Criminological Association and has participated in the drafting of new laws to
fight organized crime in the Russia Duma. He is also considered to be one of the foremost
scholars on Russian organized crime and has published numerous papers and monographs on
this subject.
Victor Shabalin
Professor of Political Science
Kharbarovsk Graduate Militia School,
Kharbarovsk, Russia
Dr. Joseph Albini is recognized as one of the foremost experts on American and
international organized crime and has written numerous books, monographs, book chapters
and papers on this subject. His book The American Mafia, (1971) is considered a
classic in the study of organized crime. Professor Albini is currently Co-Director of The
Joint Russian-American Academic Committee For The Promotion Of The Study of Comparative
Criminal Justice.
J.L. Albini
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Department of Criminal Justice
4505 Maryland Parkway, Box 455009
Las Vegas, NV 89154-5009
R. E. Rogers, Ph.D. has been studying Russia/The Soviet Union for thirty-five years as
a student and professor. He is presently the American Co-Director of the Joint
Russian-American Academic Committee for the Promotion of The Study of Comparative Criminal
Justice at Eastern Michigan University, and is also a consultant on the Russian criminal
justice system. Dr. Rogers has co-authored several articles on the Russian criminal
justice system and is involved in a number of collaborative research projects with his
Russian colleagues.
R.E. Rogers
Co-Director of Joint Russian-American Academic Committee
for The Promotion Of The Study Of Comparative Criminal Justice
Eastern Michigan University
Continuing Education/Interdisciplinary Technology
493 W. Forest, Detroit, MI 48201
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