Evgeny Almarav, the Minister of State for Security and Defence, has said the government will not ‘u-turn’ in the face of growing opposition to a spate of deportations, which he says were ‘justified and right’.
In an interview on PTV breakfast news this morning Mr Almarav, who took up post as one of the country’s top interior ministers at the end of June in the recent reshuffle led by Prime Minister Krill Serbin, said that the government’s ‘crime crackdown’, instigated last autumn by former Prime Minister Asta Dahn, had led to the dramatic increase in deportations of criminals to foreign nations, but that he was ‘not concerned’ by this and felt it represented the ‘success’ of the policy.
Almarav, the Assemblymember for Ivanye in Chimsk, was seen as an outside choice for his new role, but was rewarded with a promotion after being considered a strong media performer and asset to the government during the 2019 presidential election. As a Coalition loyalist, he has taken on one of the biggest departments in Mr Serbin’s new government.
Coming in to post last month, Mr Almarav faced a large in-tray of issues related to crime and security; most pressingly, a large number of deportation cases that had been delayed by the paralysis at the top of government when former Justice and Prisons Minister Yulia Warner quit in March. Ms Warner was not replaced at the time by Prime Minister Dahn, resulting in an apparent ‘confusion’ as to the ongoing policy of the government. Dahn, in response to growing criticism from her Nationalist opponents had launched a significant shift in crime policy – increasing the number of raids conducted across the country, pouring millions of extra funding into policing and law enforcement and signing new cooperation agreements with Polasciana’s closest neighbours in Eiffelland and Wiese. The issue was a major factor on Election Day, but the New Year’s Day terrorist attacks, conducted at two popular border crossings in January, however since devastated the government’s reputation over security.
Questioned on the 40% rise in deportations conducted in the past year, Mr Almarav today defended the government’s record, saying that the crackdown policy was ‘making the country safer’. But a number of foreign government’s have raised concerns as to the sheer number of deportations increasing from Polasciana – particularly in the last few weeks since the new government took office.
“We are worried that some of these cases are being sped through under a resurgence of the administration’s heavy-handed crime policy, and that they may not be legitimate cases for deportation. This is concerning given Polasciana’s recent accession into the Gallian League, where it has signed significant protections about the use of forced removal of non-citizens” said one ambassador.
Others, internally, have raised the suggestion that the Prime Minister and Mr Almarav were being ‘pushed’ into ‘looking and acting tough’ due to criticisms from the Nationalists and other political opponents who have jumped on the government’s handling of the January terrorist atrocities and used them to attack the government.
“The simple fact is the government is acting out of desperation to look tough in the face of criticism – that is not sustainable” said another source.
Mr Almarav said he believed the policy was ‘working’ and that it should continue to be extended and implemented ‘at pace’. “The simple fact is, and we have known it for some time, that porous borders in the west and north of the country have seen crime gangs increase, and the transit of illicit supplies – drugs, weapons and in some cases; people. This cannot continue. The government believes the crackdown policy is the right one – we have to be tough on this. There cannot be compromise with criminals” the minister continued in his interview earlier today.
His words have echoed statements from other government officials – including Foreign Minister Schevchenko. Writing in this publication in May, Ms Schevchenko, then in the position of Education, Science and Healthcare secretary stated border security was an issue she saw as one of the country’s highest priorities. Whether significant reform on the issue will be brought forward is another matter, considering Polasciana’s ongoing implementation of Gallian League membership requirements. But what is clear, is the government’s policy on extradition and deportation won’t be changing any time soon with both Mr Almarav and Ms Schevchenko wedded to the policies of their respective predecessors.
