Deputy of the State Duma Andrei Lugovoi (LDPR) introduced amendments in the State Duma to laws on local self-government (LSG), “On non-departmental security” and “On private detective and security activities” that allow municipal authorities to involve the private security in controlling of public order, including at meetings. As Deputy Lugovoi explained, the municipal authority tasked to combat terrorism, but “there were not provided means to solve it”. Experts doubt that the amendments will be passed as private security structures shouldn’t replace the state.
Using amendments to the law on local self-government (LSG) by Deputy head of the security committee, Andrei Lugovoi offers to give municipal authorities the right “to involve to protect the municipal property and maintain order” organizations, that have a legal right to provide security services. “In the Russian Constitution there is stipulated the right of LSG to protect public order by forces of the municipal police, that doesn’t exist, - stated in the explanatory note to the project. – A number of tasks on prevention of terrorism and emergencies is entrusted to the municipal authority, but means for its solutions are not provided”.
Andrei Lugovoi said to “Ъ”, that his package of bills just “closes white spots in the legislation”. According to him, “there were complaints in the Security Committee that it is impossible to involve the private security when carrying out of any event”. Now Cossacks and militias are involved in ensuring public order at concerts, football, mass events, said the deputy, which “one way or another are encouraged financially”. And proposed amendments to the law “On private detective and security activities” will allow attracting private security enterprises to this activity. The deputy also offers to give the right to the private security “to monitor places of mass stay of people, using permitted technical means for gathering of information”. As he explained to “Ъ”, limitations for private security guards do not allow them, in contrast to detectives, effectively protecting objects, which are potentially dangerous in relation to terrorism.
In the third bill Lugovoi offers to prohibit creating the departmental security “in the form of state unitary enterprises” (SUE), noting, that such SUEs are created for commercial activities. “The right to create the departmental security was used by 11 ministries and departments, - stated in the explanatory note to the project. – But of 46 176 objects, protected by the departmental security, the only 10 834 are the state property”. Other objects, said Mr. Lugovoi, are protected on a contractual basis. He thinks this is “a violation of the competition law”, as “the departmental security has privileges – it shouldn’t have a license for security activities, its employees may use small arms”.
Member of the State Duma Committee on Security Ernst Valeev (“United Russia”) doubts that amendments of the colleague “will be passed” - its conception is too controversial. The private security, according to him, “was created with the condition that it shouldn’t replace the state security structures”: “We introduced the departmental security at airports, where a terrorist threat is increased”. Recently, said Mr. Valeev, there is empowerment of a private security industry, but we need to think seriously and discuss, to fix it by the law: “A dispute between private and departmental structures is for a long time – this is the market”. Member of the Presidential Council on human rights Kirill Kabanov doubts that private security guards should be given the same rights in gathering of information, as detectives have: “We shouldn’t create little secret services”. And security SUEs, the human rights activist thinks, will dissapear itselves – “the government’s decision until 2016 is to eliminate them”. He is sure, that the idea of Lugovoi “to expand the rights of the private security is their direct lobbying”.