Regardless of the positions held and past merits

In total, in the first half of 2017, 116 corruption offenses were detected in the Vitebsk region, which is significantly, namely one and a half times more than last year. The number of detected cases of bribery increased by 3 times (from 12 to 34), and embezzlement through abuse of official powers (47 offenses) was suppressed by 15% more.

For committing corruption-related offenses, 56 officials were brought to criminal responsibility, and the measures taken resulted in the actual recovery of damages totaling more than 4.7 million denominated rubles.

Prosecution officers supported the state prosecution in criminal cases against the chairman of the Ushachi rural executive committee and the chief accountant of the Postavy district executive committee, who committed embezzlement of funds through abuse of official powers (Article 210 of the Criminal Code);

The investigation of criminal cases against a number of officials of executive authorities has been completed. They are accused of, out of mercenary and other personal interest, giving illegal instructions to the heads of several enterprises in the region to gratuitously allocate workers, equipment, and property of organizations to them (Part 3 of Article 426 of the Criminal Code). One of them, moreover, essentially used his official powers to manage his son's construction "firm," which led to an additional qualification of his actions under Article 429 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus ("Participation of an official on state service in the management of an organization engaged in entrepreneurial activity, contrary to a prohibition established by law, if the official, using his official powers, granted such an organization benefits and advantages or provided patronage in another form").

Prosecutors have submitted criminal cases of bribery against a number of employees of tax and transport inspectorates, and border service to court; cases of corruption offenses have been initiated against individual enterprise managers who have crossed the line of anti-corruption legislation.

It should be stated without hesitation that the Belarusian corruption "landscape" is quite broad and diverse. It represents many spheres of our society's life. Corruption is acquiring increasingly sophisticated forms. This phenomenon "mutates," sending prosecutors new and new challenges. As noted by the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Belarus, A.V. Konyuk, "...today, from the point of view of corruption, the criminalization of the economic sector is primarily occurring."

In the current year, prosecutors of the Vitebsk region, during inspections, have identified non-isolated cases of non-compliance by state officials of the inspected entities with the requirements of legislation on the procedure for providing and using gratuitous (sponsorship) assistance, on income declaration, on compliance with the restrictions established by the Law "On Combating Corruption."

All violations of anti-corruption legislation have been met with prosecutorial response measures: 96 submissions have been made, 44 protests have been filed, 67 orders have been issued, and 119 official warnings have been given. Based on the results of the review of supervisory acts, 214 guilty officials have been brought to disciplinary, administrative, and material liability.

"The focus of our work is directed at the economic component, as a pledge of the national security of the state. Work has been intensified to identify violations of legislation in the implementation of public procurement in order to ensure transparent and efficient spending of budget funds, compliance by economic entities of the region with the requirements of legislation on the procurement of goods (works, services) in the implementation of state programs and investment projects is being analyzed, including on issues of using budget funds allocated for construction, capital and current repairs.

ремонта объектов республиканской и коммунальной форм собственности. Выявляются нарушения, принимаются соответствующие меры реагирования».

Например, прокурорами установлено, что должностными лицами одного из предприятий сферы ЖКХ при осуществлении закупки дорогостоящего оборудования, при описании условий для участия в процедуре государственной закупки (в документах, размещенных на официальном сайте в глобальной компьютерной сети Интернет icetrade.by) был существенно ограничен доступ потенциальных поставщиков описанием излишне конкретизированных параметров (размеров, технических требований) оборудования, чем грубо нарушены требования Закона «О государственных закупках». Прокурором района директору предприятия внесено предписание, процедура закупки отменена, новая процедура проведена в четком соответствии с требованиями действующего законодательства и без ущемления конкурентных возможностей потенциальных поставщиков.

Необходимо отметить (возможно, это заинтересует наших граждан, имеющих отношение к сфере закупок), что территориальными прокурорами и специальным подразделением прокуратуры Витебской области обеспечен постоянный мониторинг информационной системы «Тендеры» на предмет выявления нарушений порядка организации и проведения закупок. В 2017 году прокурорскими работниками выявлялись многочисленные нарушения  законодательства, в том числе факты необоснованного перехода от конкурентных процедур к закупкам из одного источника, факты необоснованного выбора победителя и т.д.

Половина прокурорских проверок антикоррупционного законодательства, так или иначе затронула сферу государственных закупок, более четверти всех актов прокурорского реагирования внесено в связи с выявлением нарушений в указанной сфере, 40% должностных лиц, привлеченных к ответственности за несоблюдение антикоррупционного законодательства, нарушили положения закона именно в сфере государственных закупок.

«Работа в этом направлении будет продолжена. Мы будем использовать весь имеющийся в наших руках правовой антикоррупционный инструментарий в целях защиты прав и

"lawful interests of citizens, the state and individual economic entities."

Head of the Department of the Prosecutor's Office of the Vitebsk Region
for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime
Justice Counselor Yevgeny Lapkovsky