The administrative penalty for violation of the state border provided by the current legislation is not sufficiently effective and does not deter violators from attempting to cross it illegally. Andriy Demchenko, the spokesman of the DPSU, said this on TV
According to him, fines as a form of administrative responsibility do not have the proper deterrent effect:
“People are not deterred by administrative responsibility and small fines. As of now, the border guards are drawing up administrative protocols and submitting these cases to the court, and the court is already making a decision on whether or not to prosecute. Therefore, of course, such a minimal responsibility of violators before the law for an attempt to illegally cross the border – it is a mild punishment, and it does not deter people from taking such steps again. And if you compare attempts to illegally cross the border before February 24, 2022 and now, it is many times more.
Demchenko said that since the beginning of this year, border guards have detained more than 13,000 people for violating the legislation in the field of border control, including attempts to cross the border illegally. At the same time, some of them fall into the field of view of the border guards more than once.
“There are persons whom we detain three or four times. And there are record holders who are detained more than ten times for trying to cross the border illegally. And people are ready to pay money for this, which is many times greater than the fines provided for violators, – noted Demchenko.
He confirmed that the government plans to strengthen responsibility for illegal border crossing. A draft law has already been submitted to the Verkhovna Rada, which provides for criminal liability both for organized criminal groups and for citizens who try to cross the border outside checkpoints or with forged documents.
