Special GSM-bracelets, designed to trace people’s movement, are currently being tested near Minsk, helping control those under house arrest. According to experts, this preventive measure could be more widely applied in our country; if the experiment is a success, practice may finally change.
A meeting of the General Prosecutor’s Office has tackled electronic bracelets and prospects for the wider application of punishments outside of imprisonment. Early in the year, a system of measures to deter criminal acts and improve criminal responsibility was signed. In particular, until recently, imprisonment accounted for almost a third of punishments — too high for our calm and quiet country. Moreover, this solution is expensive, since over 32,000 people are currently resident in prison.
Speaking of the concept’s implementation, Deputy General Prosecutor Alexey Stuk notes that fewer people have been imprisoned this year. At the same time, criminal acts incurring fines, which act as a deterrent, have risen as a portion of the total by just 0.8 percent. Some acts are to be decriminalised but Mr. Stuk is yet to reveal which are to be eliminated from the Criminal Code; a special inter-departmental group is still working on the issue but certain financial crimes are likely to be reduced to fine penalties, as will some misdeeds while holding official office.
