Commercialization of militia services

[The full text of this paper is in Russian language only.]

The scope of professional activities of the Russian militia (police) greatly expanded during the 1990s to include many paid-for services such as providing security, information, transportation and paperwork services. The authors believe this transformation happened in two stages where irregular additional income seeking (money extraction) by poorly paid militia officers in the beginning of the 1990s has evolved into large-scale, institutionalised and well-organised activities.

What do militia officers themselves think about such a change? A survey of 2009 militia officers conducted in 8 Russian regions in 1999-2001 sought to describe these activities and understand underlying social mechanisms. The survey reveals that:

• 19 per cent of officers engage in commercial activities during their on-duty time
• 19 per cent have accepted cash on the spot instead of writing out official fines during their off-duty time
• 7 and 5 per cent sold information during their on- and off-duty times respectively.

The authors further explore a geographical dimension and find that Moscow and the Moscow region are highly commercialised regions, with half the officers engaged in earning additional incomes during on-duty hours.

Other findings and conclusions include:

• not infrequently, the militia partner with criminal groups in their economic activities
• with shifted priorities towards paid-for activities, law enforcement functions are undermined, which is revealed in the general public’s attitude: of the surveyed officers 58 per cent think that the general public has a guarded attitude towards militia and 32 per cent think that attitude is negative
• the more the militia is engaged in commercial activities, the worse the crime rate in this particular region.

The authors identify three main reasons for the emerged situation. These are:

• economic liberalisation that stimulated economic/entrepreneurial activity in many population groups
• upsurge in crime rates and a subsequent increase in demand for law enforcement
• low salary levels in militia which is inadequate to risks, responsibilities and the complexity of the job.

The authors conclude by saying that the solution to the problem should be systemic combining social, political and economic measures. Some types of commercial activities should be legalised, salaries should be doubled and fighting against illegal and criminal activities in the militia must continue.