Protocol on Interaction of Law-Enforcement Bodies in the Zone of the Georgian-Ossetian Conflict

• Country/entity

  Georgia
  Russia
  Ossetia
  
• Region

  Europe and Eurasia
  Europe and Eurasia
  Europe and Eurasia
  
• Agreement name

  Protocol on Interaction of Law-Enforcement Bodies in the Zone of the Georgian-Ossetian Conflict
• Date

  26 Sep 1997
• Agreement status

  Multiparty signed/agreed
• Interim arrangement

  Yes
• Agreement/conflict level

  Intrastate/intrastate conflict ( Georgian Separatist Conflicts (1989 - ) )
• Stage

  Framework/substantive - partial
• Conflict nature

  Government/territory
• Peace process

  South Ossetia peace process
• Parties

  For the Russian side (signed)
  
For the Georgian side (signed)

  For the North-Ossetian side (signed)
  For the South-Ossetian side (signed)
• Third parties

  -
• Description

  Agreement provides framework for cooperation between the two sides in the Ossetia conflict, including responsibilities and areas of focus. Agreement also provides for the withdrawal of the JPKF observation posts and hand over to local law enforcement entities.

• Agreement document

  GE_RU_970926_Protocol on Interaction of Law-Enforcement Bodies in the Zone of the Georgian-Ossetian Conflict.pdf | Download PDF

Groups

Gender

State definition

Governance

Power sharing

Human rights and equality

Rights related issues

Rights institutions

Justice sector reform

Socio-economic reconstruction

Land, property and environment

Security sector

Transitional justice

Implementation

PROTOCOL ON INTERACTION OF LAW-ENFORCEMENT BODIES IN THE ZONE OF THE GEORGIAN-OSSETIAN CONFLICT

Settlement of Java, South Ossetia, 26 September 1997

Current situation in the conflict zone tends to further stabilization.

Crimes and incidents that

have occurred this year have been mainly of political rather than criminal nature.

Efforts have continued to establish interaction between law-enforcement agencies of the sides that together with the Command of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces implement practical measures for normalizing the situation in the conflict zone.

The Working Group meeting on February 4 1997 recognized the need for staged transfer of JPKF functions to law-enforcement bodies of the sides, under Articles 4 and 5 of the Memorandum On Measures for Building and Strengthening Mutual Confidence between the Sides in the Georgian-Ossetian Conflict, signed in Moscow on May 16 1996, Statement on the meeting between E.A. Shevardnadze and L.A. Chibirov in Vladikavkaz on August 27 1996, and paragraph 4 of JCC Decision of February 13 1997.

The sides agreed to:

1. provide for efficient legal and personal protection from criminals for all people living or passing across the conflict zone;

improve coordination between law-enforcement bodies for establishing order in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict area;

exchange information about plotted or committed crimes with further arrest of the criminals;

conduct coordinated measures for arresting organized criminal groups.

2. Participate in the development and implementation of target programs to combat crime, drug trafficking, money counterfeiting and other kinds of crime;

have permanent stable contacts with operative duty officers of the sides for timely exchanging information and taking necessary measures.

3. Coordinate investigation and search operations and other necessary actions for investigating crimes committed in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone, including those committed in previous years, and for instituting criminal proceedings against all perpetrators, also for taking action to detect and detain them.

4. Showing their good will, both sides to always consider and agree at an adequate level the issue of transferring perpetrators of minor criminal offenses, together with their investigatory information, for being prosecuted by the other side;

exclude the practice of illegal discharge of the transferred criminal offenders by the sides, thus ruling out possible mutual distrust of the law- enforcement bodies;

create an integrated database of so-called ‘criminal underworld leaders’.

5. Take joint efforts to block all ways and opportunities for selling stolen cars;

the sides to commit to provide comprehensive and effective support to each other for stolen property detection and return.

6. Consider transferring personal and retirement histories of police officers, also their arms and vehicles to stakeholder sides;

7. Provide for the Road Police and other services in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone to work in close cooperation with the JPKF Command;

agree locations of the Road Police posts in the conflict zone with the JPKF Command.

8. at least once in a month hold regular consultations of heads of law-enforcement agencies for addressing issues that pertain to implementation of provisions of this Resolution.

9. Before 15 October 1997, remove three-sided JPKF observation posts, namely the posts of Ergneti, Tamarasheni, and Kekhvi.

Order maintenance function on this section shall be transferred to the police of the sides in conflict.

The JPKF Commander shall make a decision as to how the free three-sided observers can be used, to be then approved by the JCC.

Law-enforcement bodies of the sides in conflict shall be made responsible for prohibiting transportation of arms and ammunition, explosives and toxic substances on the Kekhvi-Tskhinvali-Ergneti section.

10. Motorcades of border guards of the Russian Federation and the Group of Russian Troops in the Transcaucasus moving on the Gori-Alagir road, to be checked and convoyed by joint Georgian and Russian military road police before they enter the conflict zone;

and to be convoiyed by JPKF representatives across the conflict zone along the Gori-karaleti-Ergneti-Tskhinvali route.

11. Systematically exchange information about illegally stored firearms;

take measures for seizing such arms and ammunition.

12. Effectively strengthen measures against drug use and drug trafficking;

set up special investigation groups to work in close contact for collecting and registering information about drug dealers and drug users, also for blocking all drug import and distribution channels.

For this purpose, the sides shall provide assistance for detecting drugs and vehicles.

13. This Resolution shall be used as a basis for interaction between law-enforcement bodies of the sides;

it shall enter into force on the date of its approval by the JCC and shall be effective till the time of final political statement of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.

For the Russian side (signed)

For the Georgian side (signed)

For the North-Ossetian side (signed) For the South-Ossetian side (signed)