Cyber department within national police set up without consent of chief – expert

The government’s offer to establish the cyberpolice and other departments does not comply with the law on the national police.

Expert of the Center for Political and Legal Reforms Oleksandr Banchuk noted this in the column on the website of the Ukrayinska Pravda (Ukrainian Truth) Ukrainian media outlet.

He recalled that the Interior Ministry had announced the establishment of cyberpolice till November 5, as well as the establishment of the department for economy protection and the department for combating drug-related crimes.

“But the establishment of these bodies looks like the attempt to urgently employ the VIPs as the cyberpolice is established on the basis of the existing department for combating cybercrime and the department for economy protection is based on the department for combating crime in the economic field,” the expert said.

In addition, according to Banchuk, the government has stepped outside its authority in establishing these departments, as paragraph 3 of Article 13 of the law on the national police provides the exhaustive list of the departments which should be set up: criminal police, patrol police, the bodies of pre-trial investigation, guard police, special police, special police service.

Moreover, the new departments can only be components of those prescribed by the law, not completely separate ones.

Banchuk notes that the police structure may be changed only after the relevant offers of the head of national police, without which the decision of the Cabinet or the Interior Ministry are illegitimate.

The expert says that the Justice Ministry should give its estimates. Otherwise, nothing will prevent the government from resuming the activities of veterinary police, transport police, the office for combating organized crime, which were eliminated pursuant to the law of February 12, 2015, or from committing another frank violation of the law on police.