| Round table “The Reform of the Interior Must Meet the
Expectations of the Civil Society” initiated by Deputy Chair
of the Moscow YABLOKO Andrei Babushkin took place in the press
centre of the Moscow Interior department on February 25.
Representatives of human rights organisations including such
renowned figures as Ludmila Alexeyeva and Valery Borschyov
participated in the round table. YABLOKO’s leader Sergei Mitrokhin
also participated in the discussion. “The interior needs not
simply to make staff reduction, but anti-corruption cleaning,”
Mitrokhin said.
Russian President proposed to dismiss 300,000 interior workers
(almost 20% of the total staff), however, he did not offer
any criteria here. Therefore, according to Mitrokhin, dismissals
may be conducted on the basis of some formal principle (e.g.
age) rather than qualification. “This means that no measures
targeted at curbing corruption in the interior will be taken,”
Mitorkhin said.
Mitrokhin proposed to start the reform from introduction
of income statements for all the interior workers and publication
of these statements at the official web-sites of the interior
bodies. In case the declared income does not match with the
actual expenditures, such worker should be dismissed.
In addition, Mitrokhin proposed to appoint one of the deputy
ministers in charge of the “clean hands” operation only.
“In case staff reduction is carried out in a mechanical way
as is proposed today, it will not lead to any positive changes
in the interior. The interior will remain corrupt from top
to bottom,” Mitrokhin said.
YABLOKO’s leader also proposed other measures: the ministry
should conclude with its new worker a state contract which
should include a social package, for example, a state financed
loan on a purchase of housing which will be cleared by the
state after 25 years of irreproachable service, however, will
be subject to annulment in case of corruption.
See also:
Human
Rights
YABLOKO
Against Corruption
YABLOKO
to organise round table “The Reform of the Interior Must Meet
the Expectations of the Civil Society”.
Press
Release. February 24, 2010
| 