In Vitebsk, issues of improving interaction between state and law enforcement agencies in preventing juvenile delinquency were discussed

It all starts small: hitting a boy from the next yard with a bucket in the sandbox, giving a classmate black eyes, singeing the whiskers of a stray cat… This is how juvenile inspection becomes a second home for young hooligans, and the Code of Administrative Offenses appears on the bookshelf next to textbooks. However, for some children, this is not a deterrent, so their more serious pranks turn into criminal offenses. This year, for the first time in five years, an increase in juvenile crime has been recorded in the Vitebsk region.

It is no secret that if a minor is raised in a dysfunctional family, it is from their loved ones that they copy negativity and project it into their lifestyle. There are known cases when district police officers detain a drunk teenager, and the parents are primarily outraged not by their child's behavior, but by their claims against the police: they say, the law enforcement officers' actions are unlawful... If parents live in wealth and can buy their child an expensive tablet, it does not mean that they are fully engaged in their upbringing, but have simply shifted some of their responsibilities onto the electronic machine. However, a fashionable gadget will not explain where the boundaries of what is permissible end. Children left to themselves do not always understand the difference between a broken window and a broken head, stealing toys and money, storing a bag of sweets and a dose of psychotropic substances, playing gangsters and real banditry...

And if earlier minors sinned with minor offenses, now they are increasingly becoming involved in "adult" crimes. Since the revival of the drug market, teenagers, following false notions of self-affirmation methods, show excessive interest in smoking mixtures and other intoxicating substances. Repeated violations of the law are also a serious problem among youth. Moreover, there is a trend of involving youth in criminal groups. And this already indicates that there are weak points in the "defense line" of responsible services and departments. This opinion was expressed at a coordination meeting on combating crime and corruption. Its key

the leitmotif was the issues of improving the interaction of state and law enforcement agencies in preventing juvenile delinquency, as well as identifying children in extreme life situations, who have become victims of crimes, cruelty, and violence.

— Juvenile delinquency has increased in both absolute and relative terms, which does not best represent the region in the republic. The positive results of work in previous years have now been nullified, — noted acting regional prosecutor Alexander Sidorovich. — A formal-bureaucratic attitude to the performance of duties in preventing crimes among children and against minors is unacceptable. Moreover, if we want to carry out this work effectively, the forms and methods of prevention must change, taking into account today's realities.

According to Anton Volkov, senior assistant to the regional prosecutor for supervision of legislation on minors and youth, law enforcement officers should pay particular attention to the timely identification of youth groups with anti-social tendencies that are prone to committing various offenses. It is necessary to ascertain their interests and social circles and to suppress the activities of such formations.

In the region, there has been an increase in crimes against minors, and there are episodes where children become victims of domestic violence. Participants in the coordination meeting are confident that this situation must be reversed by improving the interaction of services and departments. The prosecutor's office considers it unacceptable for teachers, coaches, educators, and other persons who have been prosecuted for violent crimes, convicted of illegal drug trafficking, etc., to be in proximity to children due to their professional activities.

Prosecutors will check the work on the mistakes of all responsible structures of various ranks, as well as compliance with the main algorithm: there should be no superficial approach to the problem.

By the way

This year, prosecutors have identified numerous shortcomings in the activities of prevention entities, includingуправленческого уровня, в результате чего внесли 460 актов прокурорского надзора, к дисциплинарной и административной ответственности привлекли 470 виновных лиц.

Olga BULAVKA, "Vitebskiye vesti".