Police of Russia (Rossyiah)
In the Russian Empire, the overall management of the public security services is assigned to Main Directorate of Police and Public Security (Russian: Главное Yправление Полиции и Oбщественной Безопасности, ГYOБ Glavnoye Upravleniye Politsii i Obshchestvennoy Bezopasnosti, GUPOB), aslo known ss simply as Police (Полиция Politsiya) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD).
The Governor is the highest authority of public security in the provinces and, with regard to the functions of the police, he may adopt the necessary measures for the protection of public order and public security. The Governorate Police Director (Директор полиции провинции, Direktor politsii provintsii) exercises the technical direction of all police services and public order in the Governorate.
The Politsiya is under the Ministry of Internal Affairs and part of the armed forces of the state, therefore being subject to the military law of peace and war, and, in the case of violations, judged by military courts.
Each of the components (Governors and Politsiya) follows its own rules of reference with regard to disciplinary measures, professional training, remuneration and career prospects.
As of 2013, the overall strength of the Politsiya is 1,483.982, excluding support organisations such as the Russian Guard, but including support personnel.
The main and foremost function and mission of the whole Politsiya is to protect the public order and security, to protect the individual citens' security, legitimate interests and properties and to provide rescue for those who are in jeopardy. In case of necessity, the Politsiya, through the lawfully pre-determined bodies, is entlited to issue decisions on or propose the suspension or termination of operations of agencies, organisations or individuals which are detrimental to public order and security; to requisition means of transport, communication equipments and other technical means of agencies, organisations, individuals and operators or users of such means according to the provisions of law.
Functions of the whole apparatus of the Politsiya include taking part to protect the Tsar and the State, protecting life and properties of the Russian peoples, to contribute to protect high-ranking leading officials of the IRO and the State and foreign guests, to contribute to safeguard important events, targets and key projects of national security, foreign representative offices, representatives of Russia-based international organisations, individuals holding or closely related to state secrets.
Other functions include advising the State on protection of national security and maintenance of social order and security, performing the unified management in protection and maintenance of social order and security, preventing and fighting against crimes of all types and violations of law on national security as well as social order and safety. In order to carry out such duties, the Politsiya is tasked to collect information, analyze, evaluate and predict situation and propose the State to promulgate and direct the implementation of guidelines, policies, laws and strategies on protection and maintenance of public order and security. Such pieces of information, because their vastity and diversity, are collected by the whole Politsiya and by all its Directorates, each according the relevant information required. Such functions, mainly the information gathering, are carried out by the Politsiya and other bodies of the MVD as well as by the SVB.
Main Directorate of Police and Public Security
In Russia, the Ministry of Internal Affairs provides for the protection of public security. Under the direct dependence of the Ministry there is the Main Directorate of Police and Public Security (Russian: Главное Yправление Полиции и Oбщественной Безопасности, ГYOБ Glavnoye Upravleniye Politsii i Obshchestvennoy Bezopasnosti, GUPOB), central governing body comprising all police services, both preventive and repressive ones; both Civil service officials and personnel (strictly for non police-related duties) and Police service personnel are assigned to the GUPOB.
The GUPOB mainly deals with non-political crime (although there are departments which deal with politically-oriented offences), public order and general police duties. In particular, offices of the GUPOB oversee services related to the maintenance of public order and public safety, prevention and repression of crime, for the protection of public security, the protection of public morality and decency and the transportation police.
Central organisation
The GUPOB is headed by the Chief of Russian Police and it is centrally organised into several Directorates and bodies:
- Investigation Committee;
- Directorate for Criminal Investigations;
- Department of Economic Investigations: it deals with adopting measures to combat tax-related and economic crimes;
- Directorate for Public Order;
- Directorate for Countering extremism;
- Directorate for Border Police
- Directorate for Transportation Police;
- Road Safety Division;
- Transport Law Enforcement Division;
- Directorate for Scientific Police and Forensics
- Forensic Centre
- Directorate for Financial and Economic Affairs;
- Directorate of Logistics;
- Directorate of Personnel;
- Restricted Territories and Restricted Facilities Law Enforcement Department.
- Legal Department
- Administrative Department
- Higher Centre for Information and Analysis
- Directorate for State Protection of Property
- Directorate of Drug Control
- National Central Bureau of Interpol
- Directorate of IT and Electronic Crimes
- Directorate for Special investigations and covert surveillance
- Inspectorate for Internal Affairs
Investigation Committee
The Investigation Committee essential mandate covers the formulation of proposals on the framing of the State’s policy with regard to the investigation of criminal activities and the organization of the work of the preliminary investigation authorities. The Investigative Department is a body whose tasks are to investigate the most complex, international and interregional, criminal cases related to the investigators of the internal affairs bodies.
Directorate for Criminal Investigations
The Directorate for Criminal Investigations deals with investigation and disclosure of criminal offenses. In addition to its other work supervises in terms of organization and methods the criminal investigation units of the criminal police authorities in the territorial subdivisions.
Directorate for Public Order
The Directorate for Public Order is one of the most important offices within the whole Police because it deals with the top-level management of public order services, mainly on sensitive occasions. The Directorate is also in charge of development and implementation of state policy in the field of public order and security, legal regulation in this area and organizational and methodological leadership of the departments of the public security police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The Directorate is closely connected with the Governorate police commands, as well as with other information channels such as SVB and police intelligence bodies, for the management of public order on the occasion of important events, including rallies, demonstrations and other mass events. The Directorate of Public Order is therefore the body which is responsible for the deployment and the guidance of the Russian Guard units, of the non-territorial police units for both public order and rescue operations in case of public calamities. The Directorate is also responsible for the oversight of the objectives of public interest and of diplomatic and service of security for foreign dignitaries temporarily visiting in Italy. The Public Order Section is the terminal point all police bodies tasked of preserving the public order and security, including the Directorate for Countering Extremism.
The Directorate includes five Divisions:
- Division for Strategic Policy and Analysis: the Division prepares guidelines on the management of public events and provisions for the use of riot forces. To achieve this, it plans public order services or for rescue operations, requesting the Russian Guard to provide to the Police autorities any special units and decides on any temporary personnel aggregations for such services. The Division also monitors and analyses events and other events relevant to public order, prepares the daily reports and produces statistical analysis. The Division is directed by a Major General of the Russian Guard.
- Division for Official Events, Surveillance and Emergency: the Division is in charge of official events attended by the most important State and Party leaders. In addition, it deals with the most critical situations and with surveillance operations. Therefore, it prepares guidelines on public order services on the occasion of such events, as it is responsible for the preparation of guidelines for the visits of foreign dignitaries in Russia. As regards the surveillance and emergency preparation activities, the Sector prepares the appropriate directives and emergency planning and crisis management that require the intervention of the Armed Forces. Finally, it is responsible for participation in exercises and international working groups for cooperation activities in the field of public security.
- Division for Sports Violence: the Division is responsible for the management of sports violence. Therefore, it mainly carries out studies and research for the prevention of violence in sport, performing a dynamic analysis of the illegality related to sporting events and establish the guidelines that result. The Division therefore takes the relations with the government's national and international sporting and other organs of the whole Main Directorate for the coordination of law enforcement activities.
- Division for Civil Defence: Office IV is in charge for the management of Politsyia contribution and intervention to civil defence operations in case of natural or man-made disasters.
- Division for licences and permits.
Directorate for Countering extremism
The Directorate for Countering Extremism (Russian: Управление по Противодействию Экстремизму, УПЭ Upravleniye po Protivodeystviyu Ekstremizmu, UPE, also known as "Directorate E") is the body in charge for combating terrorism and political radicalism. The Directorate's task includes addressing challenges such as political extremism, anarchism, communism, subversion, republicanism, Islamism and separatism (especially in Caucasus), and supporting the SVB. There is no clear definition of ‘extremism’ in Russia.
The Directorate monitors social networks in search of content promoting extremism, ethnic or religious hatred. The responsibility of countering political and religious extremism is shared between the Directorate E and the SVB’s Directorate for the Protection of the State. As a rule, the SVB takes on prominent or relevant cases. The police are left with street activism.
Its remit is completely obscure – its officers are neither police, nor officially part of a pro-Kremlin movement.
The headquarters of the Directorate for Countering Extremism consists of nine Divisions:
- Division for Confidential Affairs;
- Division for Organized Crime;
- Division for Counterterrorism;
- Division for Political Affairs: it deals with banned groups and political parties that keep operating under a different name;
- Division for ensuring the security of persons subject to state protection.
- Division for religious extremism: it mainly deals with Islamism and Islamic extremism;
- Division for separatist extremism;
- Division for suppressing extremism at public events;
- Division for economic activities of extremist organizations.
Operational units of the Directorate exist in all seats of Governorates of 1st Class and in other relevant cities.
Operational methods
For the officers (nicknamed Эшники Eshniki), the eradication of organised crime and terrorism is a mission they carry out with quasi-religious zeal, and they consequently hold little regard for the legality or otherwise of their actions. Dividing society into ‘baddies’ and the rest, the officers reportedly do not shrink from using force during interrogations, and planting forged evidence (usually drugs) on suspects whose role in other crimes they are unable to prove.
The Directorate’s workers actively search the social media accounts of oppositionists and activists. They look for information about protests organised by the opposition and join discussion groups in order to provoke others. Directorate employees also go to rallies - first and foremost to record any new demonstrators, but sometimes also to harass participants.
Directorate for Border Police
The Directorate for Border Police is responsible for the issuing of Russian international passports, resident registration and immigration control in Russia. The Directorate is one of the largest investigative agency in the Russian government. The Directorate for Border Police works alongside the Migration Committee of the Ministry of Labour and Employment and with the Border Service of the SVB.
The Directorate consists of seven Divisions:
- Division for Immigration Control;
- Division for Citizenship Affairs;
- Division for Immigrants;
- Division for the organization of visas and registration;
- Division of external labor migration;
- Division for the organization of passports and registration of public accounting;
- Division of International and Public Affairs.
Directorate of Personnel
The Directorate of Personnel is responsible for supervising the personnel divisions of the internal affairs authorities and the Police’s educational establishments. The Directorate is subdivided into:
- Division for Police Schools;
- Division for General Affairs and personnel;
- Division for Personnel and Litigation;
- Organizational and Inspectorate Department, whose principal responsibilities include the analysis and planning of the Ministry’s operational activities and also the organization of oversight and auditing activities within the system of the Ministry of the Interior.
Directorate for Financial and Economic Affairs
The Directorate for Financial and Economic Affairs is in charge for sustaining and financing the Main Directorate. It is divided into two Divisions:
- Department for Accounting Services;
- Department for Budgeting which is involved in the formulation and implementation of government policy with regard to the financing of the internal affairs authorities, the interior forces and the Federal Migration Service.
Directorate of Logistics
The Directorate of Logistics provides support and performs the functions of a ministry in formulating and implementing State policy in the areas of logistic and medical support, information technology and communications within the system of the MVD. The Directorate has five Divisions:
- Division of Contracts and supplies management;
- Division of Police Health Service;
- Division of Police barracking;
- Division of Technical Services and Telecommunications;
- Division of Motorization.
Territorial Organization
The Main Directorate of Police and Public Security is organized across the Russian Empire with boundaries coinciding with Governorates and Governorates-General.
Special Directorates of Police
In each Governatorate-General exists a Special Directorate of Police (Russian: Специальное Управление Полиции, СУП Spetsial'noye Upravleniye Politsii SUP), linking Moscow and the Governatorate-level Police Directorates within the Governorate-General and directing the latter ones. The Special Directorates operate reporting to both the Chief of Police for the exercise of the decentralised inspection and control functions in all offices and to the relevant Governor-General for the carrying out of the decentralised organisational and administrative functions. The Special Directorates also contribute also to the development of plans and programs relating to the procurement, supply and allocation of human resources, equipment and logistics and the related checks. The Special Directorates are based in Governorate-General capital cities or towns.
Current Special Directorates of Police are:
- Special Directorate of Tbilisi: HQs in Tbilisi and in charge for the Viceroyalty of Caucasus;
- Special Directorate of Riga: HQs in Riga and in charge for the Baltic General Governorate;
- Special Directorate of Tashkent: HQs in Tashkent and in charge for the Russian Turkestan.
Mission
The Directorates have a primary responsibility for general affairs, for the personnel and resources use to meet temporary requirements, for transfers for environmental compatibility and to return to service. The Special Directorates are headed by Colonel-Generals of Police. The fact that the Special Directorate reports only and directly to the Chief of Police determines that it can be used (and sometimes it is actually used) to bypass central Directorates; this allows a strengthening of the local Police Director's technical say, against the local Governor's opinion, which may not be so technically qualified. The Special Directorate also functions as collector from logistics and support services Divisions, in order to provide an unified management.
Organization
Each Directorate is subdivided into eight Divisions:
- General Affairs Division: it deals with general support activities. The Division includes the Secretariat, the Inspection and Audit Office (one of the most important office within the Directorates) and the Legal Office.
- Personnel Division: the Personnel Division deals with personnel transfers and includes the Recurring Temporary Needs Office, the Emergency Needs Office and the offices designed to assess the proposed environmental incompatibility (the Personnel Assessment Office) and to provide and alternative see (Transfers Office).
- Health Service Division;
- TLC Division;
- Motorisation and Logistics Division;
- Facilities Division;
- Planning and Organisation Division;
- Internal Affairs Division.
Internal Affairs Division
The Internal Affairs Division deals with disciplinary and order enforcement matters within police personnel of the GUPOB; therefore, as it is should be emphasised, this organisation falls outside the military police duties.
The Internal Affairs Division is aimed to provide discipline, integrity and order enforcement: the political surveillance is carried out by the apposite organisations.
The Internal Affairs Division acts as a territorial terminal of the Inspectorate for Internal Affairs. The Division is organised into three offices: a Secretariat and two operational offices: Police Ethics and Integrity Office and Police Misconduct Office.