Speaking at a legal forum in St. Petersburg, the head of Russia’s Investigative Committee called for solving economic problems through internal migration. Photo: Alexander Demyanchuk/TASS
Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia Alexander Bastrykin called for telling the truth about migration policy. Speaking at the 12th International Legal Forum in St. Petersburg, he stated that, in their current form, immigration regulations lead to the growth of extremism and become a threat to national security. The head of the investigation commission asked the deputies when the normal immigration laws would be approved.
Below we publish the main things that the head of the Russian Investigative Committee said.
UNDER CONSTRUCTION – ONLY 13 PERCENT
There is no exact information on how many immigrants there are in Russia. Bastrykin estimated their number at 14.5 to 16.5 million people. “1.2 million immigrants were brought to Moscow, 880 thousand to the Moscow region, 860 thousand to St. Petersburg,” said the head of the Investigative Committee. However, only 13 percent of visitors work on construction sites. The rest is in taxis, food delivery and markets.
EXTREMIST CRIMES – 2.5 COUNTS
Over the past year, the total number of crimes committed by immigrants decreased by 3 percent and amounted to 39 thousand. At the same time, the number of particularly serious crimes committed by immigrants increased by 32 percent. The number of sexual crimes, as well as crimes in the field of drug trafficking, has increased significantly. And extremist crimes committed by visitors increased by up to 147 percent. Among them is the terrorist attack on Crocus Town Hall.
Immigrants who remain illegally in Russia commit more crimes than “legal” ones. The head of the Investigative Committee proposed considering illegal presence in Russia as an aggravating circumstance when sentencing.
YOU HAVE TO FIGHT EVEN WITH THE PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE
Often, other law enforcement officials also interfere in the process of bringing immigrants to justice for their crimes.
“We initiated a criminal case for an immigration crime and the Prosecutor’s Office, using its right, annuls the decision,” said the president of the Investigative Commission. “They cancel it and I give the order to restart it. It takes up to three or four times. In a case in the Moscow region, I ordered the regional department of the Investigative Committee to initiate a procedural investigation against the deputy district prosecutor.
THEY GO FOR PASSPORTS, BUT THEY ARE NOT IN A HURRY TO THE MILITARY OFFICES
Visitors who have received Russian citizenship are in no hurry to register in the army. The ICR created a special group that “brought” more than 30,000 so-called “new Russians” to the military registration and enlistment offices. 10 thousand of them have already gone to the zone of the Northern Military Region.
“Why do they need them there?” Bastrykin asked himself, and answered: “Good hands are needed to dig trenches and create fortifications.” The head of the Investigative Committee proposed synchronizing the issuance of Russian passports with military registration.
INTERNAL MIGRATION IS MORE RELIABLE
“We need to understand how much foreign labor is needed to boost our economy. “The most important thing is to change Russia’s migration policy, perhaps even get us to use internal resources, internal migration, to solve our economic, political and national problems . and other problems,” said Alexander Bastrykin.
