Public awareness of the Investigative Committee's activities has increased - Shalukhin

Public awareness of the Investigative Committee's activities has increased. This opinion was shared with a BELTA correspondent by Vladimir Shalukhin, Head of the Investigative Committee Department for the Vitebsk Region, following a telephone dialogue with the region's residents. 

He noted that on March 17, calls from citizens to the direct line were exclusively within the Committee's purview. This indicates the public's awareness of the law enforcement agency's functions. In particular, callers disagreed with decisions made in criminal cases, requested clarification on the application of criminal procedure legislation in specific investigative situations, and so on.

"When we first began to actively use such a form of public engagement as a direct telephone line, we received numerous calls that were outside the jurisdiction of the Investigative Committee. These could include issues related to property obligations, marital and family relations, requests for clarification on civil law matters, and even complaints about public utilities. Now, citizens are well aware that the primary task of the Investigative Committee is the investigation of criminal cases," noted Vladimir Shalukhin.

According to him, the agency's openness to the media and the systematic work of investigators in legal education of citizens contribute to such awareness: speeches in work collectives, personal participation of investigators in considering submissions to enterprises aimed at eliminating the causes and conditions conducive to committing crimes, and active participation of agency representatives in round tables and seminars in the field of jurisprudence. All issues received by Vladimir Shalukhin during the direct telephone line have been assigned, and some issues have been taken under his personal control.

Alena Tikhonova, BELTA.