Raising the Roof: The Rise of the Russian Private Security Industry

• NCJ Number: 217107
• Journal: Crime & Justice International Volume: 22 Issue: 95 Dated: November/December 2006 Pages: 10-13
• Author(s): Mark Galeotti
• Date Published: November 2006
• Length: 4 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Historical Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article reviews the history and discusses the future of the private security industry in Russia.

Abstract

In two decades since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the private security industry in Russia has grown from a small enterprise to a $4.3 billion industry, and it is increasing 20-40 percent annually. This boom in the private security industry has been largely due to problems related to Russia's transition to a market economy. In the course of this transition, violence and the threat of violence were used to seize businesses and eliminate potential rivals. The courts were unable to provide quick, effective redress, so alternative means of resolving disputes and recovering debts became a necessity. The Russian private security industry is technically bound by the terms of the 1995 Law on Private Detectives and Security. Although President Putin has made a greater effort to control the operations of private security firms under this law, they generally operate unimpeded. Security personnel carry unlawful weapons and engage in unlawful methods in commercial espionage and counterintelligence. They rely on political and economic clout as well as able lawyers to minimize the danger of being constrained by the law. In 2005, the Federal Government established FGUP "Okhrana," a Unitary Federal State Enterprise intended to provide private security to businesses and geographic regions. In 2006, a new law granted FGUP officers wider powers than the rest of the private security sector. Under this law, they can enter private premises without permission or a warrant if they have reasonable cause to believe a criminal is inside. They can also use weapons denied most private security personnel. The intention is to give the government's own private security agency a market advantage, so as to reduce and/or eliminate many of the truly private security organizations. 5 notes