Ruling party MP: current police bill to turn Russia into 'concentration camp'
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Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/
Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W.
Washington DC 20036]Moscow, 6 September: A member of the State Duma from (the ruling party) One Russia, Andrey Makarov, is calling against the adoption of the draft law on police in its current edition because, in his view, the current draft law would give the internal affairs structures unlimited rights.
"This law is in substance the abandoning of everything that we have fought for and won over recent years when we spoke of modernization... This is the complete omnipotence of the Interior Ministry. If we adopt this law, it will be scary to live in our country," Makarov announced on Monday (6 September) at a round-table meeting dedicated to the discussion of this draft law.
The discussion is being held at the initiative of the State Duma Security Committee and its participants include representatives of law-enforcement bodies, senators, members of the Public Chamber and of a number of other agencies.
Makarov, who is one of the leaders of the liberal club of One Russia, stressed that in this case he expressed his personal view.
According to him, granting the bodies of internal affairs unlimited rights will lead to "the creation of a new concentration camp that will be called 'Russia', which will be run by a new criminal group called the 'police' - be it under its old or new name".
The State Duma deputy suggested that this draft law is actively supported by the Interior Ministry because this structure is interested "in bonding the authorities with blood".
"All our press today continues to be full of news from the battlefield - internal affairs bodies wage a war against their own people", he said, noting that today these structures, "as is common practice in a combined criminal group, want to bond the authorities with blood, to tie them to the decisions that are taken".
Makarov thinks "that the authorities still have the opportunity to reject it and say: 'We are not with them, we are with the people', however, after the law is adopted, this opportunity will be lost and people will start thinking of the authorities the way they today think of the Interior Ministry".
With regard to all sorts of public councils set up under law-enforcement structures - the MP is convinced - the attempt to hide behind the names and reputations of honest people is "the most vile deception that has been suggested should be committed in our country".
Makarov thinks that adopting the law on police in the edition that has been put forward would be a big mistake.
Keywords: Russian Politics, Government, Law, Crime, Corruption, Human Rights, Russian Issues, Russia, Johnson's Russia List, Russia News
