The Report on Security Situation in the Territory of the Czech Republic in 1997 (Comparison with 1996)


6. Present Activities Aimed to the Ensuring of the Internal Security

6.1. Legislation Sphere

The conception of the reform of the material and proceeding penal law, the administrative punishments, the administrative proceedings and the administrative judiciary.

In the second half of 1997 lady-minister of justice established the new inter-departmental commission has been working at the above mentioned conception. The partial outputs to separate professional problems are being elaborated in the frame of established sub-commissions.

The material "The Common Starting Points of the Future Legal Amendment of the Penal Law, the Administrative Punishments, the Administrative Proceedings and the Administrative Judiciary" was prepared in the area of the Administrative Law (it was presented to the government in January 1998).

Law No. 253/1997 Coll., which changes and amends law No. 140/1991 Coll., Penal Code, in wording of later regulations, has been focused mainly on the addition and enlargement of penalties concerning the economic and property criminality and the expansion of alternative punishments.

Law No. 150/1997 Coll., which changes and amends law No. 141/1991 on judicial criminal proceedings (criminal proceedings code), in wording of later regulations, adjusted the processing of state authorities during the action of the expulsion.

Law No. 209/1997 Coll., on providing victims of the criminality with the financial aid and on the change and addition of some laws respects the conception stated in the European Convention on the compensation of victims of the criminality.

The Bill of Law on the Protection of Official Secrets (The government approved the bill of the factual intention of this law by its resolution No.379 from June 25, 1997. The bill of endorsed wording of the law was adopted by the government by the resolution No. 31 from January 21, 1998. The Parliament of the Czech Republic discussed the bill on February 25, 1998 in the first reading and proceeded it further to the legislative negotiations in the committees).

The factual intention of the amendment of the law No. 71/1994 Coll. on the sale and export of objects of the cultural value. (The factual intention of the law amendment was presented to the government in 1997, recently the discussions to it were initiated in the Parliament of the Czech Republic).

The amendment of the law No. 35/1965 Coll., on literary, scientific and artistic works (author s law) was approved by the resolution of the Government of the Czech Republic No. 319/1997. The amendment was not adopted by the Parliament of the Czech Republic.

The factual intention of author s law was presented to the government of the Czech Republic on December 30, 1997 (at present it has been negotiated in the commissions of the Legislative Council of the Government). The factual intention of the law follows the protection of author s law and laws relative to standards of European Union countries and some industrial countries.

Law No. 49/1997 Coll., on the civil aviation and on a change and addition to the law No. 455/1991 Coll., on the trade business in wording of later regulations, came into effectiveness on April 1, 1997. (It includes also the protection of the civil aviation against illegal activities).

The edict No. 322/1997 Coll., which changes and amends the edict No. 103/1995 Coll., on regular technical checks and measurements of emissions of motor vehicles, implements "registration checks of vehicles". The draft of legal and jurisdictional conditions for the work of the Council for the Intelligence Activity and conditions for the work of the Office of the Council (approved by the resolution of the government No. 73 from February 12, 1997).

Law No. 18/1997 Coll., on the peaceful exploitation of the nuclear energy and ionising radiation (atomic law) and on a change and addition of some laws.

Law No. 19/1997 Coll., on some measurements concerning the prohibition of chemical weapons and on a change and addition of law No. 50/1976 Coll., on the territorial planning and the building code (the building law) in wording of the later regulations of the law No. 455/1991 Coll., on trade business (the trade law) in wording of the later regulations of the law No. 140/1991 Coll., the penal code, in wording of later regulations.

The bill of the factual intention of the law on socially legal protection of children (approved by the resolution of the government No. 447 from July 23, 1997).

In the course of the year departments of the government presented another legislative intentions connected with the sphere of the internal security and the public order13.


6.2. Prevention Sphere

The Ministry of Interior directs and co-ordinates the work of the secretariat of the Republic Committee for the Prevention of Criminality (members - the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Physical Training, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Regional Development and Inter-departmental Anti-drug Commission). The Minister of Interior is the chairman of the committee, the deputy of the Minister of Interior is an executive vice-chairman.

Regarding the fulfilment of tasks given by the committee the Ministry of Interior worked out "The Report on the fulfilment of the Social and Criminality Prevention Program until 1996 and The Criminality Prevention Strategy until 2000" according to source materials of departments represented in the Republic Committee for the Prevention of the Criminality, which were approved by the resolution of the government No. 209 from April 9, 1997.

The priority of the Republic Committee for the Prevention of the Criminality is to realise The Complex Co-operative Program of the Criminality Prevention on the Local Level, which is in case of cities with the high level of the criminality financially supported from the part of the General Cash Report of the State Budget. The methodology for the implementation into the Complex Co-operative Program of the Criminality Prevention was newly elaborated in 1997, in which the importance is given to the level of the index of the idea of the criminality, the extent of unemployment, the concentration of socially deprived persons, the share of young people in the number of inhabitants, the kind and the quality of city buildings, the increase of immigration, etc. Programs focused on the help to criminality victims and the prevention of the inter-ethnic violence and multi-cultural education have been initiated in the frame of programs. 38 cities were involved in the program at the end of 1997.

The amount of financial means separated from the state budget for the realisation of the Complex Co-operative Program of the Criminality Prevention was 115.000.000 CZK in 1997. This sum was provided for 372 partial projects by the republic Committee for the Prevention of the Criminality. The well-elaborated complex program approved by the village representation, financial participation of the city on its realisation and establishment of the program manager function are conditions for the allocation of the subsidy. The educational program was prepared and realised for managers of the Complex Co-operative Program of the Criminality Prevention on the Local Level in 1997, in order to unite the attitude to the creation of preventive systems in separate cities.

All departments represented in the Republic Committee worked out their prevention programs for years 1997 - 2000 on the basis of the resolution of the government No. 209 from April 9, 1997. The program of the Ministry of Interior in the area of the criminality prevention and the misuse of addictive substances for years 1997 - 2000 (adopted by the resolution of the operative meeting of the Minister of Interior No. 32/2 from October 20, 1997) includes only non-repressive measures of the criminality prevention, for the implementation of which the co-operation of the wide spectrum of public institutions, non-state subjects and individual citizens is desirable. This concerns mainly the property, violent and moral criminality.

Tasks for separate departments and units of the Ministry of Interior, the Police Presidium and the Police of the Czech Republic are worked out in this program. The integration of the Police of the Czech Republic in the criminality prevention system on the local level is one of them. Prevention information groups of the Police of the Czech Republic were established in the city of Plzeň, Prague and Ostrava. The co-operation with press speakers of the Police of the Czech Republic is developing, they should guarantee also the prevention sphere in the cities realising the above mentioned program. In the frame of the co-operation of the Ministry of Interior and the British Police the program determined to the exchange of knowledge of the British Police concerning the criminality prevention has continued, the training seminar concerning methods of the criminality prevention at the police was organised in the co-operation with British specialists, members of already established prevention information groups and the press speaker of the Police of the Czech Republic took part in this seminar.

In 1997 the methodology of the situation prevention focused on the use of camera monitoring systems was worked out. This material contains conditions of the selection and installation, the exploitation of knowledge from operations including the list of components tested in the test room accredited by the state. The overview of projects financially supported from the state budget is presented. The working seminar concerning these problems was arranged for runners of camera monitoring systems.

The international co-operation directed to the integration of the Czech Republic to the international co-operation in the field of the criminality prevention - mainly involvement in the work of the Commission for the Criminality Prevention and the Criminal Justice of the United Nations and in the Permanent Committee of the European Convention on the Violence of Spectators and Inappropriate Behaviour during Sport Events Especially Football Matches. The Czech Republic presented its criminality prevention system at the European conference on the criminality prevention held in May in Holland in the frame of the Dutch chairmanship in the European Union. The bilateral co-operation with USA- the state of Florida has been developing. The conference with USA concerning the youth criminality is planned for May 1998 as well. The common project on the assessment of the effectiveness of preventive programs in cities has been also prepared.

The intensification of the co-operation with non-governmental organisations was another priority of the Ministry of Interior in the criminality prevention sphere in 1997. The co-operation is realised on two levels. On the local level there were 101 projects supported by the amount of 15.000.000 CZK in the course of establishment of the Complex Co-operative Program of the Criminality Prevention. On the department level during the elaboration of conception and methodological materials and organisation of common seminars and conferences (e.g. with La Strada - the conference on the prevention of women trafficking). The Intensive co-operation is realised with the White Circle of Safety, the common publication of commented documents for children rights was issued in co-operation with DCI (the Czech section of the international security of children).

In 1997 www page was worked out and presented on Internet (www.mvcr.cz), on which the complex information on realised activities in the sphere of the criminality prevention on the local, departmental and inter-departmental levels is presented (500 pages/A4). The conception of the mediumistic work in the sphere of the criminality prevention. The activities were focused mainly on the creation of information for inhabitants concerning the possibilities of the protection against criminality and information and methodological materials for experts involved in the criminality prevention.


6.3. International Co-operation

The membership in the European Union (further EU) belongs to the main priorities of the foreign policy of the Czech Republic. The procedure of the access to EU together with the membership in NATO is the confirmation of the fact that the Czech Republic has firmly settled down in the society of democratic states of Europe.

In 1997 the Conception of Foreign Relations of the Ministry of Interior of the Czech Republic for Years 1997 - 2000 was elaborated. The Ministry of Interior as the main guarantee for the area of the internal order and security focused its activities on the international co-operation especially towards EU, NATO, Council of Europe, migration problems, human rights and the internationally contractual sphere.

European Union

The publication of the Assessment of the European Commission concerning the application of the Czech Republic concerning its admission to the European Union was a very important step directed to the future membership in EU. The European Commission recommended the Czech Republic to be among six candidate countries, with which the negotiations would be initiated in the first wave. In the same time the European Commission draws the attention of the Czech Republic to areas, which have to be given the priority attention in the connection with efforts focused on obtaining the full membership.

The Czech Republic has had already the possibility in the frame of political and professionally specialised dialogue to join partially the mechanism of the co-operation working among member states. The regular dialogue takes place on various levels and in various spheres.

NATO

The Madrid Summit was the most important from the Czech Republic s point of view, the Czech Republic (together with Poland and Hungary) was asked to initiate negotiations concerning the admission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (access discussions).

The Ministry of Interior took the active part in the preparation of the admission of the Czech Republic to NATO as well. The Government of the Czech Republic identified eleven key areas for the preparation of the membership in NATO, spheres of the management of the crisis and the civil emergency planning of which are covered by the Ministry of Interior as well as the protection of official secrets. The access discussions, in which representatives of the Ministry of Interior participated, were held from September till November 1997 in Brussels. The fulfilment of tasks resulting from the direction and co-ordination of above mentioned areas - legislation measures are mainly concerned - will continue in 1998.

Council of Europe

Activities in the field of educational programs in the legislation spheres (Themis, Demo-Droit) have continued. representatives of the Ministry of Interior and the Police of the Czech Republic regularly participated in dealings of the European Committee for Migration (CDMG), Expert Committee for Questions of the Territorial Asylum, Refugees and Persons without Nationality (CAHAR) and other specialised committees. Works focused on the preparation to the admission of the Czech Republic to eight agreements of the Council of Europe, which are in the direction and co-ordination of the Ministry of Interior, were initiated.

The office of the supreme state prosecuting counsel is the member of respective committees of experts of the Council of Europe (for the mediation of the criminal proceedings, money laundering and tasks of the public accusation in the system of the criminal justice). It participates also in actions of the OCTOPUS Project, the common project of the Council of Europe and the European Commission concentrated on the questions of the combat corruption and organised crime.

Following agreed treaties of the Council of Europe came into effectiveness for the Czech Republic in the first half of 1997:
the First and the Second Supplementary Protocol to the European Convention on Extradition from December 13, 1957, Supplementary Protocol to the European Convention on the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Affairs from April 20, 1959 and the Convention on Money Laundering, Investigation and Confiscation of Assets from Crime from November 8, 1990.

Internationally Contracting Sphere

In 1997 eight contracting documents were agreed in total (2 of them were presidential, 4 governmental and 2 departmental), 3 of them have concerned the most serious criminality (with France, Turkey and Ukraine - they have not come into effectiveness yet). The contracting agreement in the sphere of re-admission with France is not of a less importance as well as the adjustment of regime and co-operation on the common borders with the Slovak Republic and the co-operation with the International Organisation for Migration. However, they have not come into effectiveness yet. In the meantime the validity of agreements in the field of the secret governmental phone and telegraph connections with Bulgaria, Hungary and Roumania was finished (they were cancelled from the Czech part).

The Agreement on the Exchange of Trainees in the Area of an Employment was prepared under the responsibility of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (in 1997 it came into effectiveness between the Government of the Czech Republic and the Swiss Federation Council).

The Ministry of Finance - the General Directorate of Customs assesses the co-operation with foreign partners as a good one. New jurisdictions and competences resulting from the amendment of the customs law mainly contributed to the above mentioned assessment ( controlled shipment, exchange of information, operative technology, etc.). These facilities are exploited mainly in co-operation with customs authorities of Germany, France, Great Britain and Slovakia. Besides concrete cases the Ministry of Finance - the General Directorate of Customs is involved in a great number of international organisations and working groups.

In 1997 the Agreement between the Czech Republic and Canada on the mutual assistance in criminal affairs was signed and the analogous treaty on the legal assistance with USA was negotiated and prepared for the signature. The co-operation of the Prison Service and partner organisations abroad has been realised on the basis of agreements concluded among the Ministry of Justice of the Czech Republic and the Ministry of Justice of Canada, Bavaria and Saxony.

Human Rights

The representative of the Ministry of Interior was engaged in the elaboration of source materials for the Preliminary Report of the Czech Republic on the fulfilment of the United Nations Organisation Convention on children rights and he participated in its defence before the United Nations Organisation Committee on children rights. The source materials for the Report of the Czech Republic concerning the fulfilment of the Convention against the Torture, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and also the answers on the Questionnaire of the Czech Helsinki Committee concerning activities of the Ministry of Interior in the sphere of the combat racism.

Migration

The Ministry of Interior in co-operation with the International Centre for the Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) located in Vienna organised the Conference of ministers on the prevention of the illegal migration in Prague, in October 1997. This Conference was already the third one resulting from the activity of the Budapest group.


6.4. Inter-departmental Co-operation

The solution of the security situation is conditioned also by the good co-operation of all concerned departmental offices, state administration authorities and self-government authorities. Working groups, commissions etc. on actual, specific problems have been established on the basis of the security situation analysis, nowadays the most important of them are following:

Inter-departmental Commission on combat economic and financial criminality (Resolution of the Government of the Czech Republic No. 228/97) approved the methodological requisite adjusting the co-operation of state control bodies and law enforcement authorities. The target is mainly to make the activity leading to the disclosure and investigation of the serious economic criminality cases more effective and to ensure providing of mutual information concerning new types of this criminality, persons and groups suspected from the commitment of the serious economic crimes. The office of the supreme state prosecuting counsel ensures the activity of the consultation group from the organisational and technical standpoints.

The co-operation between the Unit for Corruption and Serious Economic Crimes and Financial Analytic Department of the Ministry of Finance have continued. Both subjects presume the frequent exchange of information concerning identified persons participating in the unusual traffics (Law No. 61/96 Coll.).

The Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Finance prepare the agreement on co-operation between the Unit for Corruption and Serious Economic Crimes and the Office for Valuable Papers in the field of the capital market.

In January 1998 the consultation group focused on the combat extremism and racistly motivated crimes was established. Representatives of the office of the supreme state prosecuting counsel, the Police Presidium of the Czech Republic, Security Information Service and the Office of Investigation of the Czech Republic are members of this group. The activity of the consultation group ensures the office of the supreme state prosecuting counsel from the organisational and technical parts.

In 1997 the activity of the commission on re-codification of the criminal, material and proceeding law was renewed in the new personal composition.

The target of the inter-departmental commission on the cultural heritage protection is mainly the development of the integrated system of the protection of the material cultural heritage (according to the governmental resolution No. 673/1997 the Ministry of Culture together with the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Finance - the General Customs Directorate will verify the effectivity of this system and will propose measurements to its improvement.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry organises co-ordinating meetings for questions relating to the adherence of the spiritual possession rights with the participation of all concerned departments. The Ministry of Culture suggests to establish the inter-departmental commission covered by the Ministry of Trade and Industry in order to solve actual problems of the concerned area, which would be provided by the initiation jurisdiction to the legislation measures.

The activity of the Committee of the Republic on the Criminality Prevention (in the direction and co-ordination of the Ministry of Interior), Inter-departmental Anti-drug Commission (at the Office of the Government), Inter-departmental Commission for Romany Community Affairs (at the Office of the Government), Inter-departmental Commission for the Civil Aviation Security, Co-ordinating Groups for the Harmonisation of Individual Subjects Methods during the Solution of Causes and Consequences of socially pathological phenomena of young people.

The activity of the working group for the preparation of the draft of complex measurements for the effective cover of agent s identity has continued as well as the activity of the working group for the elaboration of the conception of the visa proceedings and checking of persons on borders modernisation.

A great number of bilateral negotiations and agreements on the co-operation focused to actual problems and then continuously to the solution of security risks problems (Security Information Service, Police of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Finance) has been realised in accordance with interests of respective departments and their units. The co-operation of the Police of the Czech Republic, Hallmark Office, Czech Commercial Inspection, State Energetics Inspection and State Office for Nuclear Security has continued.


6.5. Other Measurements of the Ministry of Interior in the Economic, Personnel Work and Education, Management and Organisational Spheres

The Ministry of Interior and the Police of the Czech Republic as the main guarantee for the field of the internal order and security adopted, besides the fulfilment of the priority tasks and measures resulting mainly from the Progress Chart of the Government Activities in the sphere of the internal security and public order, a number of further measures in 1997. There were mainly security actions with the certain target focused on determined kinds of criminality and to the critical territories and then methodological assistance concerned, the intensified stress was imposed on the co-ordination and control activity, the great amount of methodological courses of instructions for policemen were organised, etc. The Ministry of Interior adopted further steps in the personnel, economic and organisational areas.

Personnel Affairs and the Education of the Ministry of Interior

In 1997 the disproportion among numbers of policemen, who finished the employment at the police (2.887) and newly engaged (2.489) and not occupied chart working places in the departments of the Ministry of Interior. 4.670 chart working places was not occupied in total as to the date December 31, 1997, 2.110 of them were for policemen (321 at investigation offices and 1.789 at Regional Administrations). The majority of free police working places is registered in the capital of Prague (619).

The slight increase of the number of university graduates 144 newly engaged, 90 released) was registered in the investigation offices, however the number of investigators with the finished law university education decreased (35 newly engaged, 39 released). From the total number of 2.622 investigators in the Czech Republic there were 40,24% of investigators with the complete secondary school education and 59,69% with university education (23,76% of them had the university of law education). The unfavourable situation as far as the educational structure is concerned has been getting even worse in the regional divisions of the Police of the Czech Republic. 9.500 policemen do not fulfil the determined educational requirement. 232 policemen with the university education left the police service and only 130 graduates were engaged. The worst proportion within the Police of the Czech Republic has been existing in the Regional Administration of the Northern Bohemia (7:26) and of the Capital of Prague (11:28).

As far the recruiting campaign is concerned the oppressive situation have lasted in Prague14 and in some districts of the former Central Bohemian Region. (The decree of the government No. 222/1997 Coll., which adjust the special unrepeated financial support for officers of the Police of the Czech Republic, has been effective since the beginning of September).

The reduction of the basic professional preparation of policemen in the education area was approved from the present fifteen to twelve months. The target was mainly to make the educational process more effective entirely. The twenty-four-months educational program was prepared for policemen who had not reached the complete secondary school education before they entered the service of the Police of the Czech Republic. The teaching plan of the reduced basic professional preparation was also elaborated for applicants with longer practice in civil professions and for specialists with the university education, the function of whom requires the specialisation.

Besides the present used offer of educational programs of the Central European Police Academy (MEPA), the co-operation with FBI Academy (ILEA) was extended. The number of seminars reflecting actual trends for screening and clarification of new types of the criminality (e.g. in the field of banking, capital market, protection of spiritual property etc.) was organised in the co-operation with top foreign professionals (USA Governmental Agencies, Council of Europe, Royal Canadian Mounted Police).

The rationalisation of the school operation was made in 1997. The educational system of the Ministry of Interior includes actually 6 Secondary Police Schools, Police Academy and 10 School Police Centres for realisation of the practical professional part of the preparation.

The attention is paid from now on to the psychological service for Police of the Czech Republic work. The experimental application of the method of solving conflicts by means of so called transactions analysis in the conditions of the Police of the Czech Republic was realised in the co-operation with the Swiss Police Psychological Service. This experimental application will gradually become the part of the service preparations and the basic professional preparation of policemen.

The assessment of the service performance has remained one of the most problematic spheres. The inertia of the deep-rooted system starting from the quantitative criteria (clarification of the criminality, the number of imposed financial penalties, etc.) is substantial. The system of the evaluation that is in function in foreign police forces has been gradually provided for the acquaintance to police management and personnel managers. In 1997 the seminar was held in which top experts from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police took part, the co-operation with the British Ministry of Interior as well brought the presentation of the police assessment ways at the most overloaded from the British police organisations.

Economic Sphere

In 1997 the Ministry of Finance announced regulation measures, which imposed the task on the Ministry of Interior to ensure with very limited sources only the basic activities of departments of the Police of the Czech Republic and of the Ministry. A number of economy measures was accepted and numerous expenses initially included in the Program of Recondition had to be transferred to future years. However, it is necessary to state that economic conditions especially for the usual operation of the Police of the Czech Republic were critical.

Capital expenses were used mainly for securing the operation of the Police of the Czech Republic. The building of HELIOS systems and PEGAS project has continued as well.

Budget means from the part of The General Cash Report and other parts of the state budget were assigned beyond the scope of the own budget (financial supports for securing refugees and displaced persons, financial means concerning the visit of the pope, securing the operation of Aviation Emergency Service and special means for the compensation of damages caused by floods were mainly concerned).

Organisational and Managing Sphere

In 1997 the Minister of Interior decided to establish three-degree managing level in the organisational structure of the Ministry of Interior (cancellation of the section and group degree), the realisation of the organisational structure change was divided into three phases (December 1997 - March 1998).

The unification process of the Ministry of Interior was finished (without the internal division to the security and civil-administration department) till December 31, 1997.

A lot of changes occurred in the structure of budget and contribution organisations (the unification of budget organisations - the Hospital of the Ministry of Interior and Polyclinic of the Ministry of Interior and the consequent merge with the Hospital of Královské Vinohrady, closing down of the Secondary Police School of the Ministry of Interior in Balková, unification of the Institute of Languages of the Ministry of Interior with the Secondary Police School of the Ministry of Interior in Prague), the new budget organisation Office of Services for the Ministry of Interior was established.

Changes in the Police of the Czech Republic concerned departments of the Railway Police Service, where the departments with the whole republic effectiveness and territorially limited effectiveness, basic departments were structured to territorial police bodies. Preparation activities for the establishment of the short-term exile centre for foreigners (opened from January 1, 1998) in the buildings of the former Secondary Police School of the Ministry of Interior in Balková.

The entire structure of the Police of the Czech Republic was unified (re-structualisation of the departments of the Police of the Czech Republic was approved as from March 1, 1998) and on the basis of analysis and assessment of the number of managing degrees and separate activities in organisational links the new criteria for the internal division of departments were set up. In the frame of re-organisation 485 working places in total were saved from administrations and regional departments of the Police of the Czech Republic as well as from the Police Presidium. The new working places were supported from the above mentioned number and 424 working places were transferred under the reserve of the Minister of Interior for the further needs of the direct police performance.


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