Russian Village’s Self-Defense Underlines Failures of Police

Feuer Frei! · 08-08-11, 01:02 AM

SAGRA, Russia — When Sergei the Gypsy wanted to show who was boss in this tiny settlement on the edge of the Ural Mountains, he gathered a posse of armed men and drove down a narrow road through the night, illuminating the forest with his headlights.
“They are coming to kill us,” one of the villagers shouted, and Viktor Gorodilov, who was in his bathhouse, threw on some clothes and joined a small group of men with shotguns, pitchforks, chains and knives to guard the road. “We just had three guns, including me,” said Mr. Gorodilov, 56. “But they didn’t expect any resistance, and we had them in our hands.”
His son Andrei threw a pine cone and shouted, “Grenade!” Women hiding behind trees screamed curses and abuse.
One of the raiders was killed, and the convoy fled, shooting to cover its retreat. “It was like ‘The Magnificent Seven’!” the younger Mr. Gorodilov said, recalling a movie in which a small band holds off an armed attack.

The encounter a month ago was the culmination of a feud between villagers in this hamlet of just 130 people and an interloper — real name: Sergei Lebedev — who they believed had taken up residence here to operate a base for the drug trade.
Since then, Sagra has become a catchword for a spate of violence around the country in which people have banded together to defend themselves in the absence of police protection. “What’s going on in this country is that the government isn’t protecting anyone,” Mr. Gorodilov said.
For nearly five minutes, by her count, a resident named Tatyana Gordeyeva tried to persuade a police dispatcher on the telephone to connect her to a station. When help finally came, she said, the battle had been over for two hours.
“The police are corrupt or lazy or politicized, and it’s the same all across the country,” said Konstantin M. Kiseyov, academic secretary of the Institute of Philosophy and Law in Yekaterinburg, which is 25 miles from the village. “So people must protect themselves. They can’t count on the government or its structures. That is why the country is turning into one big Sagra.”

Trust in the police is so low that only 40 percent of victims report their crimes, according to recent studies, whether they involve robbery or car theft or pickpocketing or more serious offenses, said Leonid Kosals, a professor of economics at the National Research University of the Higher School of Economics in Moscow.
In December, the symbol of local lawlessness was a village called Kushchevskaya, where a family of 12 was slaughtered by a gang that had ties to the police.
In a commentary on the political Web site Politcom.ru, Aleksei Makarkin, vice president of the Center for Political Technologies, compared the two episodes, saying government officials had “proved superfluous.”
“They understand that it’s safer for their personal careers to keep quiet than make a mistake that could damage their political futures,” he wrote. “Society demands people who are capable of decisive actions in pursuit of noble aims, even if it’s not always strictly legal.”

Among them are civic groups like an agency in Yekaterinburg called City Without Drugs that makes citizens’ arrests of drug dealers and locks addicts inside its own treatment centers, combating a drug epidemic that had been left to fester through police inertia and corruption.
Acknowledging the problems with the police, President Dmitri A. Medvedev recently ordered a revamp of the force — based on tests of competence and character — that is expected to reduce its size by about 200,000 officers, to just over a million nationwide. A pay increase is planned as a measure of reducing corruption.
But although corruption, inefficiency and sheer laziness can be factors in poor policing, a more fundamental issue makes significant reform unlikely, said Mr. Kosals of the Higher School of Economics. The underlying problem is that the security forces in Russia are structured to safeguard the social order rather than to protect and serve citizens, he said.

SOURCE

kraznyi_oktjabr · 08-08-11, 02:08 AM

Reeaally surprising, unfortunately. Non corrupted official (police or other) in Russia must be in the list of endangered species.

Castout · 08-08-11, 04:04 AM

In many parts of the world the corruption of police force or reduction of it as mere tool for ruling regime is a sure sign of failure on the part of the government to provide security to its people hence indirectly encouraging crimes and lawlessness.

Jimbuna · 08-08-11, 05:59 AM

Sounds like the west end of Newcastle on a Saturday night

Feuer Frei! · 08-08-11, 06:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimbuna

Sounds like the west end of Newcastle on a Saturday night

A hidden gem in the world by the sounds of that

08-08-11, 01:02 AM	#1
Feuer Frei! Navy Seal Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Valhalla Posts: 5,295 Downloads: 141 Uploads: 17	Russian Village’s Self-Defense Underlines Failures of Police SAGRA, Russia — When Sergei the Gypsy wanted to show who was boss in this tiny settlement on the edge of the Ural Mountains, he gathered a posse of armed men and drove down a narrow road through the night, illuminating the forest with his headlights. “They are coming to kill us,” one of the villagers shouted, and Viktor Gorodilov, who was in his bathhouse, threw on some clothes and joined a small group of men with shotguns, pitchforks, chains and knives to guard the road. “We just had three guns, including me,” said Mr. Gorodilov, 56. “But they didn’t expect any resistance, and we had them in our hands.” His son Andrei threw a pine cone and shouted, “Grenade!” Women hiding behind trees screamed curses and abuse. One of the raiders was killed, and the convoy fled, shooting to cover its retreat. “It was like ‘The Magnificent Seven’!” the younger Mr. Gorodilov said, recalling a movie in which a small band holds off an armed attack. The encounter a month ago was the culmination of a feud between villagers in this hamlet of just 130 people and an interloper — real name: Sergei Lebedev — who they believed had taken up residence here to operate a base for the drug trade. Since then, Sagra has become a catchword for a spate of violence around the country in which people have banded together to defend themselves in the absence of police protection. “What’s going on in this country is that the government isn’t protecting anyone,” Mr. Gorodilov said. For nearly five minutes, by her count, a resident named Tatyana Gordeyeva tried to persuade a police dispatcher on the telephone to connect her to a station. When help finally came, she said, the battle had been over for two hours. “The police are corrupt or lazy or politicized, and it’s the same all across the country,” said Konstantin M. Kiseyov, academic secretary of the Institute of Philosophy and Law in Yekaterinburg, which is 25 miles from the village. “So people must protect themselves. They can’t count on the government or its structures. That is why the country is turning into one big Sagra.” Trust in the police is so low that only 40 percent of victims report their crimes, according to recent studies, whether they involve robbery or car theft or pickpocketing or more serious offenses, said Leonid Kosals, a professor of economics at the National Research University of the Higher School of Economics in Moscow. In December, the symbol of local lawlessness was a village called Kushchevskaya, where a family of 12 was slaughtered by a gang that had ties to the police. In a commentary on the political Web site Politcom.ru, Aleksei Makarkin, vice president of the Center for Political Technologies, compared the two episodes, saying government officials had “proved superfluous.” “They understand that it’s safer for their personal careers to keep quiet than make a mistake that could damage their political futures,” he wrote. “Society demands people who are capable of decisive actions in pursuit of noble aims, even if it’s not always strictly legal.” Among them are civic groups like an agency in Yekaterinburg called City Without Drugs that makes citizens’ arrests of drug dealers and locks addicts inside its own treatment centers, combating a drug epidemic that had been left to fester through police inertia and corruption. Acknowledging the problems with the police, President Dmitri A. Medvedev recently ordered a revamp of the force — based on tests of competence and character — that is expected to reduce its size by about 200,000 officers, to just over a million nationwide. A pay increase is planned as a measure of reducing corruption. But although corruption, inefficiency and sheer laziness can be factors in poor policing, a more fundamental issue makes significant reform unlikely, said Mr. Kosals of the Higher School of Economics. The underlying problem is that the security forces in Russia are structured to safeguard the social order rather than to protect and serve citizens, he said. SOURCE __________________ "History is the lies that the victors agree on"- Napoleon LINK TO MY SH 3 MODS

08-08-11, 02:08 AM	#2
kraznyi_oktjabr Sea Lord Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Republiken Finland Posts: 1,803 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 0	Reeaally surprising, unfortunately. Non corrupted official (police or other) in Russia must be in the list of endangered species. __________________ You talk to God, you're religious. God talks to you, you're psychotic. - Dr. House

08-08-11, 04:04 AM	#3
Castout Silent Hunter Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Jakarta Posts: 4,794 Downloads: 89 Uploads: 6	In many parts of the world the corruption of police force or reduction of it as mere tool for ruling regime is a sure sign of failure on the part of the government to provide security to its people hence indirectly encouraging crimes and lawlessness. __________________ My blog: http://exposingsingapore.wordpress.com/

08-08-11, 05:59 AM	#4
Jimbuna Chief of the Boat Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: 250 metres below the surface Posts: 190,539 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 13	Sounds like the west end of Newcastle on a Saturday night __________________ Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something. Oh my God, not again!!