FBIS4-62028 "drsov092_a_94017"
FBIS-SOV-94-092 Daily Report 11 May 1994
RUSSIA INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

U.S. Consulate Seen Overreacting on Crime

U.S. Consulate Seen Overreacting on Crime PM1105150594 Moscow TRUD in Russian 11 May 94 Evening Edition p 5 PM1105150594 Moscow TRUD Russian BFN [Vissarion Sisnev report: "Attention U.S. Tourists. The U.S. Consulate in St. Petersburg Has Warned Fellow Nationals that Attending the Goodwill Games Poses a Threat to their Lives"] [Text] Washington -- The American public got to know about this 12-page guide from an account of it by COX NEWS SERVICE correspondents. It is anticipated that about 5,000 sportsmen from many countries will participate in the Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg, and not only Russians but also thousands of foreign guests will attend. It was precisely this that the U.S. Consulate in St. Petersburg had in mind when it put together a guide for prospective tourists planning to visit Russia's "northern capital." It is, however, not exclusively for them but also for business people going there at any other time. In the first place it is not at all advised that anyone do this alone, as "the criminal situation in St. Petersburg has significantly worsened over the last year and problems of personal security are more acute than ever." The guide informs them that "criminal acts, which are often carried out during the day or at times when people are at home in their apartments, are becoming more and more daring." It goes on to say: "Criminals are better armed than ever, are often well informed about their chosen victims, and take less and less notice of the law-enforcement agencies, which they are stronger than and which feel besieged." Some 15 cases over the last six months are cited where the criminals' targets were consulate staffers themselves, and in one case the attack took place in the street in a densely populated area and no one came to his assistance. On one occasion a consulate staffer was "mercilessly beaten by four militiamen." In general the U.S. diplomats have a low opinion of St. Petersburg's law-enforcement agencies, especially of State Motor Vehicle Inspection Administration staffers. For example, they said the following about them: "Traffic policemen go as far as threatening totally innocent motorists with blood tests using unsterile needles in an attempt to extort bribes from them." St. Petersburg State Motor Vehicle Inspection Administration staffers, the document asserts, "are well-known for using their power to stop drivers and extort fines from them for real or imagined offenses." Those who travel to this city by rail are advised to wind wire around the compartment door's lock for the night because the robbers check out in advance who gives the impression of being vague or untogether. What is more, they have at their disposal a strong, colorless gas with which they knock passengers out. Businessmen are advised to keep a lookout for literally everyone, including their Russian partners, as "U.S. business people are with increasing frequency becoming the object of violent attacks, kidnappings, and extortion, which are sometimes planned by people with whom they have joint operations here." Immediately after this publication appeared, there was a hearing in the Senate Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and International Communications, in which experts in this field spoke. Russia was more or less the main focus of the senators' attention, as according to CIA Director James Woolsey, the Russian mafia is already working in close contact with the Italian mafia and the Colombian drugs cartels. Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts added that what we are dealing with is the establishment of a "global mafia" and that Russian organized crime, embracing 3,000-4,000 groups, is in control of no less than 40 percent of the national economy. But there is nothing in all this about which our own press has not written. Therefore, there is no reason to accuse the U.S. diplomats and politicians of anything -- what's true cannot be altered. Tourists and businessmen have traveled here just the same, though maybe not in the numbers we would have liked. But articles by journalists or television reports are one thing; people here regard them not so much with distrust as according to the principle: Well they have to write about something.... But they have another attitude toward official warnings from state and diplomatic organs. U.S. citizens have gotten used to paying attention to them, and they have saved a large number of their lives when on the advice of the consulate they have quickly packed their bags and quit a danger zone. In any case the CNN radio and television corporation -- which is behind the games -- clearly took the alarm bells in St. Petersburg seriously, inasmuch as it considered it necessary to assure the public: The consulate has overreacted, it is only necessary to "show the same degree of caution as you would in New York, or Paris, or any other big city." It was also announced that plans are in preparation to guarantee the security of athletes and guests at the Goodwill Games, and, as has been the case with all other international sporting events, additional forces drawn from the militia and Army will be brought in to guard the participants and the sporting facilities.