Those who lived in the Soviet Union do not need to be told what the people’s squads are. Usually, their detachments were formed at enterprises, which, according to the schedule, had to send several employees on night patrols in nearby courtyards. The watchmen made sure that citizens did not drink, did not behave hooligan-like, and did not retreat into dark corners. Today, according to the head of the Main Directorate of Regional Security of the Moscow Region, Kirill Karasev, the formation of people’s squads is no longer carried out at enterprises, but in municipal administrations. And they take it very seriously. Those who wish to become watchmen are not required to throw their fists at hooligans, but they will be taught a couple of defensive techniques, as well as first aid, before being released into the streets.
“It is very important that the guards themselves live in the areas they will patrol. Then they will be well aware of all the problem areas and there will be more desire to make the area safe, because their relatives and friends live here,” says Karasev. Volunteer police assistants are not yet paid, but now they receive uniforms, shoes, video recorders, smartphones, flashlights and first aid kits. And, according to Karasev, today there are already 85 teams of volunteers working in the Moscow region, which include almost three thousand people.
“At night, our guards patrol public spaces where young people gather and look into the courtyards of drinking establishments. The police also involve guards in raids on places where migrants live and work,” the administration of the Shchelkovo urban district reported. RG. The guards take on the work that the police do not like to do.
And sometimes it is the voluntary workers themselves who initiate serious checks, reporting both employers who, in their opinion, violate immigration laws and the rubber apartments where dozens of visitors are housed. And in the 29 municipalities where the people’s brigades will be in service in the autumn, there are many complaints about the migrants.
