Features of the protection of facilities subject to mandatory protection

Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 534 of 25.10.2007 "On Measures to Improve Security Activities"

In modern conditions, ensuring the safety of facilities is considered one of the main areas of activity of the Department of Protection of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Belarus.

In accordance with the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 534 of 25.10.2007 (as amended by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 341 of 01.08.2011) "On Measures to Improve Security Activities in the Republic of Belarus", a list of facilities subject to mandatory protection by the Department of Protection has been defined.

Mandatory protection includes such facilities, the disruption of which will lead to a loss of control, destruction of infrastructure, irreversible negative changes in the economy of the entity or administrative territorial unit, or significant deterioration of the safety of the life activities of the population residing in these territories for an extended period of time.

This Decree establishes that:

• the protection of facilities is the exclusive right of the state, implemented only by the Department of Protection;
• the types and conditions of protection of facilities are determined by contracts for the provision of security services concluded between the structural unit of the Department of Protection and the organizations that own the facilities by right of ownership, economic management, operational management, or that lease such facilities;
• the procedure for organizing and carrying out the protection of facilities, equipping these facilities with security means and systems, and engineering and technical means of protection is established by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, including jointly with state authorities.

The list of facilities subject to mandatory protection by the Department of Protection includes such facilities as: buildings of republican state administration bodies, courts, prosecutor's offices, the Investigative Committee, the State Service of Medical Forensic Expertise, banks, television and radio companies, and vaults. Facilities where the production, storage, or sale of weapons, ammunition, narcotic substances, precious metals, and others is carried out.

The activities of the Department of Protection do not extend to facilities protected within its competence by the Armed Forces, internal affairs bodies, and internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, state security bodies, state protection, and other state organizations.

One of the features in this area of protecting certain facilities where oil processing or storage, hazardous production facilities, is the joint implementation of their protection by employees and/or civilian personnel of the militarized and/or guard protection of the Department of Protection and security personnel of the organizations to which these facilities belong. At the same time, the technical means and security systems installed at the facilities are controlled only by the Department of Protection of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Head of the Braslaŭ Department of Protection
Matsuk S.V.