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Actions of law-enforcers during the soccer match “Dynamo” (Kyiv) – “Shakhtar” (Donetsk) were lawful

17.08.2005   
“The service check did not confirm the statement that the militiamen violated the operating law by their actions. The information on the allegedly existing order about the beating of fans was not confirmed too”. The official response of the PR department of the Ministry of Interior of Ukraine accompanied with the commentary of the “Prava ludyny” editorial board

Recently one of the Internet editions has published the information that during the soccer final match of the Cup of Ukraine between the teams “Dynamo” (Kyiv) and “Shakhtar” (Donetsk) law-enforcers resorted to illegitimate actions. The author of the publication believes that militiamen detained the fans, which came to the match, without any legal grounds.

By order of the top officers of the Ministry of Interior a thorough service check of this fact was conducted. It appeared that the events developed as follows.

On 29 May 2005, at 14:30, representatives of the public organization “Fan-club of the soccer club “Dynamo” (Kyiv)” started to gather near the stadium named after V. Lobanovskiy. After an hour the number of fans was almost 500. At 15:40 they formed the column and went to the stadium. Going to the national sport complex “Olimpiyskiy” along central streets and squares, they partially blocked the vehicular traffic in following direction.

It should be pointed out that the protection of public order during such events is realized in compliance with item 37 of “Order of provision of public order during the conduction of soccer matches” (Order, in what follows) No. 823 approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on 29 June 2004. This Order was elaborated in accordance with the European Convention on violence and improper behavior of viewers during sport actions, ratified by Law of Ukraine No. 2791-III of 15 November 2001.

 Being guided by this document, the militia officers realized the preliminary visual examination of viewers at the entrance to the stadium for prevention of bringing of the forbidden things (item 42 of the Order).

Besides, the law-enforcers, jointly with the workers of the stadium, organized the spot examination and check of personal things of the viewers (item 43) during their passing to the stands. Such measures were taken with the aim of prevention of bringing to the stadium of the objects, which could be used for breach of public order and safety. These rules concerned alcoholic and soft drinks in glass bottles, weapons and pyrotechnics, as well as prevention of passing to the stadium of the persons, known as offenders of public order, and drunken people. In particular, representatives of the “Dynamo” fan-club, who stayed in the 11th sector, used bad language, lighted the homemade pyrotechnics and threw it into neighboring sectors. The “fans” ignored the reprimands of law-enforcers.

The officers of the special squad “Berkut” of the Kyiv department of the Ministry of Interior, whose service duty consisted in counteraction to prevocational deeds of the viewers and opportune interference in the course of events, following Article 13 of the Law of Ukraine “On militia” detained 30 fans for violation of public order and resistance to the legal actions of militia.

On the basis of the materials on commitment of administrative offences by 13 detained, among which there were inhabitants of Kyiv, the Kyiv region, Donetsk and Lviv, the court took the decision on administrative arrest.

During the superficial search of two minor detained (by the way, girls from Kyiv), three packages with a specific smell wrapped in newspapers and bound with scotch were found in their bags. The girls explained that these objects had been put to their bags by unknown persons on the territory of the sport complex “Olimpiyskiy”. The expert examination, conducted by the scientific center of forensic expertise of the militia department of Kyiv, ascertained that the packages contained a homemade explosive: pyrotechnical mixture consisting of oxidant and inflammable element. In this connection the Pecherskiy district militia station instituted criminal case No. 06-5437 of 7 June 2005 according to Article 263 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

The service check did not confirm the statement that the militiamen violated the operating law by their actions. The information on the allegedly existing order about the beating of fans was not confirmed too.

As regards the statement of the author of the publication that after the end of the match he was detained for 1.5 hours, recorded on video camera and interrogated about his personal data, the actions of militia officers were lawful, since, according to Article 11 of the Law of Ukraine “On militia” militia has the right:

-  to detain the persons, who have committed administrative offences, for compilation of protocol or consideration of the case per se, if the question can be solved on the spot, for the term up to three hours;

-  to make video and audio records as a subsidiary method of prevention of illegitimate actions and investigation of offences;

-  to reveal and register the persons, who are liable to the preventive influence on the basis of the procedure envisaged by law, to issue the official warning to them on inadmissibility of unlawful behavior;

-  to compile protocols on administrative offences, to conduct personal search and examination of things, to seize things and documents, to take other legal measures for provision of the proceedings in the cases on administrative offences.

Representatives of the Kyiv city department of the Ministry of Interior clarified to the administration of the soccer club “Dynamo” (Kyiv) and public organization “Fan-club of the soccer club “Dynamo” (Kyiv)” the provisions of normative-legal acts concerning the questions of conduction of soccer matches and responsibility for offences.

PR department of the Ministry of Interior of Ukraine

“Prava ludyny” commentary:  The response of the PR department of the Ministry of Interior of Ukraine evidences that the priority task of the Ministry of Interior is protection of its reputation, but not the analysis of the incident and development of measures for prevention of such cases in future.

First of all, this response does not answer the questions put in the letter. In particular, the questions for what the personal data were collected about the persons, which came to the concrete sector of the stadium, how these data would be used in future, why it was prohibited to bring water in plastic bottles, etc.

The only reaction to the statement about brutal treatment of the detained by the “Berkut” officers and disproportionate application of force was the formal reply that “service check did not confirm the statement that the militiamen violated the operating law by their actions”.

So, what the operating laws read? Part 4 of Article 12 of the Law of Ukraine “On militia” states: “In case of impossibility to avoid the application of force, militia must not exceed the measure needed for execution of the duties imposed on militia, and the opportunity of infliction of damage to health of the offenders and other citizens must be minimized. If damage is inflicted, militia must guarantee the necessary aid to the victims as soon as possible”. It is interesting, whether this norm was observed.

In our opinion, one can hardly regard the detention for two hours of all viewers present in the 11th sector (absolutely groundless for the majority of them, as it follows from the response) and further fixation of their personal data on videocassette as the actions that meet the task of forming of new image of militia.

 “Prava ludyny” editorial board
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