At the beginning of 2015, it became known about the liquidation of the largest state structure - the Russian Federal Drug Control Service. The news sparked a lot of discussion. First of all, employees of the department were indignant, whose further fate remained completely unknown. No less questions were caused by the decision to transfer all powers and affairs to law enforcement agencies. The Ministry of Internal Affairs is already not happy with the results of its activities, and now an additional load has appeared. What is the reason for the reduction in FSKN and how this will affect the fight against drugs in the country, will be discussed below.
History
After the entry into force of the presidential law of 09/26/2002, the State Committee on Counteracting Illicit Trafficking in Drugs and Psychotropic Substances under the Ministry of Internal Affairs was formed. The reason for the creation of the new department was an increase in the manufacture and distribution of drugs in different regions of the country. Law enforcement agencies could not cope with the task, therefore, a structure was needed whose purpose was to track sales routes, identify a network of organizers and manufacturers.
In 2003, the committee was transformed into the Gosnarkokontrol headed by police general V.V. Cherkesov. The new department received a large staff, previously reduced from the tax police. In the same year, a regulation was approved that regulates the scope of the organization, the rights and powers of officials. In 2004, the structure received its final name - the Federal Drug Control Service of the Russian Federation (FSKN).
In 2011, the service even received its own banner, approved by presidential decree. But already in 2015, they started talking about the imminent reorganization of two state structures of the FMS and the Federal Drug Control Service of the Russian Federation. The reason was a protracted crisis; massive cuts were needed to stabilize the budget.
Area of activity
The tasks of the department are regulated by the Regulation of 2003. The activities of employees are aimed at preventing and detecting cases of drug trafficking. The structure was not involved in criminal prosecution, its duties included a preliminary investigation with the transfer of cases to the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the prosecutor's office. According to the orders of the Federal Drug Control Service of Russia, officials had the right to conduct administrative proceedings with their subsequent transfer to court.
One of the goals of the service was to coordinate with various structures and state bodies on issues of control over the circulation of drugs and psychotropic substances. The primary task for the organization was to establish relations with similar structures in other countries to obtain data on the import or export of prohibited substances. For 13 years, a single database has been created, which recorded data on the persons involved in the commission of the crime, their relationships and other operational information. From 2008 until liquidation, the head of the Federal Drug Control Service was Viktor Petrovich Ivanov.
Structure
In 2007, in order to optimize the work in the field of combating drugs, the State Anti-Drug Committee was formed. This body did not perform any executive functions, its tasks included coordinating the actions of other departments in the process of combating drug trafficking. It included ministers and directors of the most important state structures of the Russian Federation, headed by an assistant to the president of the Russian Federation. The Federal Drug Control Service organizes the work of the anti-drug committee.
The federal service includes 10 departments:
- administrative;
- operational search;
- own security;
- international law;
- investigative;
- on cooperation with other departments;
- rear support;
- forensic;
- HR.
In each city of the country, regional administrations were formed, which were subordinate to the central apparatus in the region and Moscow.
Public opinion
Oddly enough, the decline in FSKN among the general population either went unnoticed or found support. Over the years, the service has formed a rather mixed opinion about her. According to statistics, more than half of convicts in Russian colonies are serving sentences under Art. 228, that is, for drug trafficking. And many cases of detention and indictment cast doubt on the legality of the actions of the employees of the Federal Drug Control Service of the Russian Federation. Most resellers were arrested during a test purchase, when a person is sometimes intentionally led to the acquisition of prohibited substances.
Therefore, public opinion about the structure was negative. In various forums you can find the stories of people who were charged for not wanting to share information or because of personal hostility. It is difficult to judge the correctness of certain statements, but the fact that the system required changes was understandable to many. True, no one expected that they would be so cardinal.
Scandals
Another reason for the discontent of the population was unexpected and sometimes strange initiatives of the leadership of the Federal Service. In 2004, a big scandal caused a decree banning the use of the drug "Ketamine" in veterinary clinics. This remedy is used to anesthetize and anesthetize animals. This decision caused a heated discussion in society and among veterinarians. At their own peril and risk, they did not stop using Ketamine, which led to many criminal cases.
Ketamine wars continued until 2006, when the Plenum of the Supreme Court authorized the use of drugs to treat animals. One of the veterinarians A. Shpak received the most serious term; he was sentenced to 8 years for trying to transfer a prohibited substance. This case caused a great public outcry and was discussed for a long time in the press.
Public criticism
According to experts, the elimination of the Federal Drug Control Service was caused not only by financial difficulties in the country, but also by the extreme distrust of the population in this department. Over the years of the service’s activity , the turnover of narcotic drugs has increased several times. The number of drug addicts has not decreased, according to the public, the brothel exists and will exist, since the majority of them are simply turned a blind eye by law enforcement agencies.
All kinds of corruption scandals and information on abuse of authority also cause indignation of the population. For example, a scandal erupted around a strange incident in Veliky Novgorod, where the deputy head of the local branch of the FSKN pointed out to a local resident the place where the amphetamine batch was laid in exchange for a well-known company’s gadget. There was also a case with the death of two employees from a drug overdose in a sauna owned by the department.
Synthetic drugs have become widespread throughout the country, causing far greater consequences for the human body. For several months they could not issue and pass a law banning this type of drug. Along with this, doctors are sounding the alarm, since today terminally ill people experiencing terrible suffering must go through a number of bureaucratic obstacles in order to obtain permission for the use of potent painkillers.
Liquidation
In 2014, Russia was on the verge of another crisis. The fall in oil prices, as well as the depreciation of the ruble, led to a serious budget deficit. As part of the new anti-crisis program, the Ministry of Finance of Russia introduced a new direction for saving state funds - it was proposed to abolish two federal services.
The liquidation of the Federal Drug Control Service brought about the dismissal of 27 thousand employees across the country, only 7.5 thousand are planned to be transferred to a new department under the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The dates were initially called until July 1, 2017, but in a recent statement, Dmitry Medvedev announced an extension of the reorganization of the structure until October 1, 2017.
The fate of employees
As planned by the government, the reduction of the Federal Drug Control Service was supposed to concern the highest ranks, it was planned to significantly reduce the administrative apparatus. But according to the old Russian tradition, ordinary employees suffered the most. In 2016, V.V. Putin, during a direct line with the population, assured the audience that fears about the dismissal of a large number of people were groundless.
Former employees express angry indignation at the ongoing reform related to the reduction of the Federal Drug Control Service of Russia. According to Presidential Decree No. 156, anyone who wishes and is suitable for training can go to serve in another department without a trial period. But more than 16 thousand people were for some reason unfit for work in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. And those who crossed over did not receive monetary compensation for months of involuntary inaction for several months. The courts of various constituent entities of the Russian Federation constantly receive claims for reinstatement in the service or payment of the expected monetary funds.
Consequences of the reduction
But the truth, as always, turned out to be different. Massive layoffs of FSKN employees and the transfer of cases to other structures will have a very painful impact on the entire fight against drug trafficking. Prosecutors and analysts are already recording a significant slowdown in the detection and prevention of drug trafficking. The situation is even worse with organized groups, which, having felt freedom, even reduced the price of goods and are not particularly hiding.
Last news
Currently, questions about the reduction of FSKN have not been resolved. No wonder D. Medvedev postponed the final date of liquidation for another 3 months. A number of important issues have not yet been resolved, primarily those related to the continuity of affairs and operational developments by new people.
The situation has not changed with thousands of former employees. More than 20% of the total number immediately after the adoption of the law filed a report on retirement, and 30% of able-bodied professionals did not find the corresponding positions. In addition, there is a problem of the lack of payments to people who are still in limbo. The courts are on their side and confirm the legitimacy of the money claims, but the Ministry of Internal Affairs does not consider itself a successor, therefore, refuses to pay money.
Like all reforms in our country, the elimination of FSKN occurs with maximum losses. As practice shows, this situation is not the last example of shock therapy for government agencies in Russia.