Volunteers in red bandages

After DOSAAF and TRP, Vladimir Putin revived another Soviet symbol, signing the law on folk squads. Who and why put on a red sleeve

After the entry into force of the law on folk squads, volunteers will receive rights similar to the police. Moscow, April 2014 /Photo: Sergey Fadeichev

Two dozen young guys - activists of the Moskovs and Light Rus' shield movements armed with pepper gas and traumatic pistols, demolish the door with a sledgehammer and break into the tiny structure - the former dispatch in the Moscow region of Otradnoye. In the room - a man of 25 wipers, a refrigerator to the right of the door, on it is an old TV. Walked clothes hang under the ceiling, an electric kettle boils in the corner. “To go out! Sharper! " - The Uzbeks wring their hands and, driving, take them out into the street. The called police takes migrants to the nearest police department. And after a couple of hours, almost all the Uzbeks return to the closet: someone is all right with the documents, someone was able to agree ...

This raid is one of the many, which was attended by the correspondent of The New Times. It doesn’t matter who they caught: migrants-illegals, pedophiles or merchants of smoking mixtures-all passed according to one scenario. But once the braid found on a stone: in September 2013, activists of the Shield of Moscow and the drug-Stop came to the hostel in Kapotn, a fight began, the police arrested 60 people-both migrants and raiders, and at the latter they brought a criminal case under the article “Hooliganism”. But here, for their happiness, the December amnesty arrived in time.

One way or another, after a fight in Kapotne, voluntary guardians of order throughout the city were filtered - by their own admission, they were waiting for the legalization of their status. Waited.

In a legal clearing

On April 2, Vladimir Putin signed the law on the participation of citizens in the protection of public order. From now on, for example, the “volunteers” who stormed the dispatch in Otradny can receive the status of voluntary assistants of the police in any Moscow Department of Internal Affairs - the procedure is declarative. He introduced himself, registered, received the crusts of the squad, a red sleeve, and with them the right to detain citizens, inspect them and check the documents. So far, however, only in the presence of an employee.

Nevertheless, the citizens face administrative responsibility - a fine of up to 2500 rubles. The warriors, on the contrary, are supposed to be monetary allowance - 150 rubles per hour of “services”. Check - I don't want to ...

At the expense of whom, first of all, the ranks of the warriors will be replenished, it is easy to predict. Today, several informal organizations are declared the task of combating illegal films, pedophiles, and mild drug dealers-“bright Rus'”, “drug-stop”, “Russians”, “occupy-pedfigy”, “Russian laid”, “Moscow shield”, “Youth anti-Narcetic specialnase”. Plus, cyberclasses from the Safe Internet League that extend pedophiles on the Internet*. The exact number of "volunteers" of the law enforcement is unknown, although, according to human rights defenders, the account goes by thousands.

A separate question is their curators. The sources of The New Times in the “Shield of Moscow” assure that even before the adoption of the law on folk squads, the work of informals was supervised by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FMS. Although human rights activists have repeatedly sent requests to these departments and always received the same answer: we, they say, have nothing to do with these young people. Requests for The New Times left unanswered.

With guardians and patrons, the situation is more improperly. Almost all of the listed movements are put forward to the nomination “Patriotic Organization of the Year” in the framework of the competition, which is conducted by the Fund for Combating Russophobia. Among the founders of the fund is an independent journalist (as he loves to introduce himself) George Rozhko, in the recent past, the head of the Pure Russia federal project under the auspices of the Central Council of supporters of the United Russia party.

In 2013, members of the United Russia and Just Russia - Maxim Mishchenko and Alexander Ageev opened in defense of the activists of the Shield of Moscow, arrested after a fight in Kapotne. Moreover, Ageev, in a conversation with The New Times, explained that the Socialist Revolutionaries have their own program to combat illegal migrants, in which they collaborate with activists of youth movements.

In the corridors of the Office of Civil Assistance, it is never empty - dozens of migrants come here a day. Moscow, June 2013 /Photo: Yuri Ivashchenko

On the other side

“I withdrew the money from the card, I just moved away from the ATM - and my hands are already wringing me. They poked in the face with crusts, we, they say, are the police, but who they really are - I do not know. They pushed into the car, took everything away, then threw it onto the road at speed, ”says Karim, a builder from Uzbekistan. The conversation takes place in the Moscow office of the Civil Assistance Committee, which human rights activist Svetlana Gannushkin founded more than 20 years ago. Its organization huddles in the basement of a residential building opposite the Olympic sports complex, the office has about 15 permanent employees, several dozen volunteers.

“Civil assistance” is a kind of counterweight to civil society to informal movements like the “Shield of Moscow” and “Holy Rus'”. Only if the latter talk a lot about their activities on the Internet and even post a video from raids, then “civil assistance” works without attracting attention - mainly those who need help know about it.

Human rights activists promptly go to migrants after the raids arranged by informals. Many of the volunteers of the committee are former political activists, someone got here through the Human Rights School at the Sakharov Center. There are immigrants from the anti -fascist environment: according to them, the street struggle with the Nazis has exhausted themselves, and here they found a field for real things. But the main part of the volunteers are graduates of the humanitarian faculties, teachers, pensioners and students.

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Received crusts of the combatant, and with them the right to detain and inspect citizens

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The organization exists both on domestic and foreign grants.

A day through the committee, almost a hundred people are passing to help. Volunteers are engaged in translating visitors and monitoring publications on high -profile cases. The owl center helps to analyze and systematize information.

“The deportation car is working properly,” says Marina Lexina, a volunteer of “civil assistance”. - People are taken from the place of work or from the house - from 200 to 800 people at once. At the same time, those who do not have any documents at all are released - there will be no court without a passport, because the person cannot be established. ” Lexin recalls how once the judge was called directly to the police department, many migrants had all the necessary documents, but court decisions were made on the basis of police protocols alone. Now the volunteers are planning to travel to the courts and in the FMS.

“After the raid in Kapotne, we provided legal support to the detainees, but, unfortunately, they turned to us late - several people have already issued a deportation,” recalls the sociologist Ute Weinmann. She came from Germany in the late 90s to study the political landscape of Russia, fell in love with the country and now works as a coordinator of “civil assistance”. According to her, the migrants are so intimidated that they often do not dare to tell about the experience, and in this case it is difficult to help them. In addition, they do not fully understand the motivation of human rights defenders, UTE admits the annoyance: “They are looking for a catch in our actions - after all, they usually come to them only to check the documents and remove the bribe.”

One way or another, the law on folk squads, human rights activists are afraid, can aggravate the disenfenity position of migrants in Russia: the authorities received an additional pressure tool in relation to people who are already crushed by fear.

What's next

Although the law on folk squads entered into force, what will be the procedure for registering their members - it is not yet very clear. “In principle, the presence of warriors was previously spelled out in the legislation, but only at the city level*,” explained The New Times on the basis of anonymity, one of the activists of the “Moscow Shield”. - You probably saw people with red bandages at rallies? These are ordinary warriors, in the traditional sense of the word ... Well, that is, conscious citizens who help law enforcement agencies. Without remuneration, albeit with crusts - specially went to receive them. Just no sense in them, they still did not give any rights. When Putin federal law signed and gave the squads normal rights, it all makes sense. ”

Now "everything will be more civilized," Ageev assures: "Now we will expand the work: in addition to the warriors, we will open the hotline."

The emphasis, according to the deputy, will be placed on informing the population and the activities of lawyers who will draw up complaints of local residents against migrants.

But human rights activists from “civil assistance” are not pleased with the innovations.

“The society today is in a state of extreme excitement, nationalist prejudices are spreading,” says Svetlana Gannushkina. “Attracting young people in the squads, the authorities give them a legal opportunity to throw out this evil energy.”

The human rights activist is not at all sure that, having received the legal status, former reiders, non-formals will not begin to abuse the authorized powers: “The warriors, on the one hand, are actually equated with police officers, and on the other, they do not undergo special training, do not bear responsibility along with the police. For labor migrants, all this will turn into legalized beatings. ”