INTERPOL CLAIMS SUCCESS, BUT KULIKOV CONCERNED.

October 12 marked the fifth anniversary of the opening of Interpol’s office in Moscow and an occasion for the international crime-fighters to boast of their successes to date. Representatives of that office told journalists that as a result of collaboration between Interpol and Russian law enforcement agencies, several dozen fugitives have been captured abroad, including, in the past few days alone, four criminals who have just been extradited to Russia from elsewhere in Europe. Automobile theft and the illegal export of art treasures such as icons constitute another major area of cooperation. But also on Thursday, Russian interior minister Anatolii Kulikov called for stepped-up measures to stem an increase in crime by the young and by women. From January to September of this year, 13 percent of reported crimes were committed by minors and 6 percent by students. Similarly, "female criminality" is on the rise. Women committed 15 percent of all crimes during that period: a 30 percent increase over 1994. Drunk criminals accounted for nearly 40 percent. (11)

Lukashenka’s Losses