A set of measures to prevent the involvement and participation of minors in unauthorized mass events has been approved at a joint meeting of the regional coordination council on Decree No. 18 and the commission for juvenile affairs of the regional executive committee.
A set of measures to prevent the involvement and participation of minors in unauthorized mass events has been approved at a joint meeting of the regional coordination council on Decree No. 18 and the commission for juvenile affairs of the regional executive committee.
– This local document is dictated by the times. It was developed on the initiative of the commission for juvenile affairs, involves interdepartmental interaction, and is aimed at preventing the involvement and participation of minors in unauthorized processions, – said Tamara Olekhnovich, Deputy Chairperson of the Regional Commission for Juvenile Affairs.
According to information from Aleksey Shakhovich, Deputy Head of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Regional Executive Committee, from August 9 to October 25, police officers identified almost 200 minors who participated in unauthorized mass events, with the majority of them being schoolchildren and students of vocational and secondary specialized educational institutions.
The interdepartmental action algorithm defines how to organise work with this category of individuals. In particular, commissions for juvenile affairs are instructed to analyse the causes and conditions contributing to children's participation in unauthorized mass events, and in case of notification of their participation, to take measures against parents or other legal representatives who improperly perform their upbringing duties.
Healthcare institutions, in case of parents seeking medical assistance for children with injuries sustained during participation in mass events, will inform the internal affairs bodies about these facts. If the child's life and health were thus threatened, the education department has the right to temporarily place the minor in a safe environment, and if an unfavourable family situation is detected, to transfer them to the care of relatives and initiate a social investigation.
In turn, law enforcement officers, when detaining legal representatives with minors at unsanctioned mass events, must promptly inform the guardianship and trusteeship authorities. Both law enforcement officers and educators conduct information and explanatory work with students and their parents regarding the consequences and responsibility for participating in unsanctioned mass events. In order to prevent such incidents, educators will identify students prone to destructive behaviour for subsequent preventive and corrective work with them. A repeated instance of a child's participation is a reason to initiate work in accordance with the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus No. 22 on identifying family distress and taking measures for child protection by the state.
The consequences of such street gatherings for the younger generation are significant: 19 minors in the region have been brought to administrative responsibility, and about 10 protocols are still under consideration by the commission for juvenile affairs.
“Explanatory work is being carried out in educational institutions with the participation of law enforcement officers. At the same time, new underage participants of unsanctioned rallies are identified almost every weekend. Therefore, we need additional measures that define the procedure for child protection specialists and preventive measures to prevent children's participation in such processions for their own safety,” emphasised Vladimir Penin, Deputy Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee.
An analysis of the reasons for teenagers' participation in unsanctioned rallies, identified by educators and law enforcement officers during conversations with minors, showed that children usually join them out of curiosity, misunderstanding of the political situation, and massive information dissemination on the internet. In this regard, the participants of the meeting concluded that it is necessary today to convey reliable information to young people that refutes fakes. To reach the modern generation, it is necessary to actively use internet technologies and build trusting explanatory conversations with individuals who enjoy authority and respect among children.
New approaches are also needed to prevent juvenile delinquency. Although its reduction has been observed in the Vitebsk region over 9 months (122 crimes were registered this year, compared to 158 in the same period of 2019), offenses committed under the influence of alcohol and in groups remain problematic. Their increase has been noted in Vitebsk, Novopolotsk, Orsha, Polotsk, and Miory districts. Vladimir Penin instructed the local executive authorities to investigate the causes and conditions of these offenses and, if necessary, to determine additional measures to reverse the negative trend.