MINSK, 21 April (BelTA) – Belarusian Interior Minister Igor Shunevich explained on 21 April how the future nationwide public security monitoring system will operate, BelTA has learned.
The Interior Ministry will oversee the system's operation. The system will connect all the cameras and special detectors all over the country, thus improving the ability of Belarusian law enforcement agencies to ensure public security and promptly respond to various negative phenomena. “The HQ will get a signal about an accident and will notify first responders, for instance, a district police department, a district department of the Emergencies Ministry, or the emergency medical aid service,” noted Igor Shunevich.
An ideal Belarusian nationwide public security monitoring system will have an HQ where all the on-duty units of the government agencies in charge of public security and people's life will be located. Those are, for instance, the Interior Ministry, the Emergencies Ministry, the State Security Committee, and the Healthcare Ministry. The system will rely on a nationwide network of video surveillance cameras. Their video streams will be fed to the HQ where operators will register various crimes and emergencies and will reroute these reports to first responders. “Such systems are used in many countries. We've already been there and saw how they work. Naturally, they save a lot of money and resources,” noted Igor Shunevich. “But the effectiveness and response times will be improved by several times.”
Asked when the nationwide public security monitoring system in Belarus may go online, the official gave no clear answer but specified that it takes two or three years to develop and deploy. “Local networks are already operational today. We are not going to build the system from scratch. More than 7,000 facilities have been fitted with CCTV cameras already. We need to connect them all into a single network and install surveillance cameras where necessary,” added the official.
In his words, the system will not require more personnel thanks to automation.
BelTA reported earlier that prospects of creating a nationwide public security monitoring system in Belarus were discussed during the government conference hosted by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko on 27 March. The head of state accepted proposals, which said that such a system will come in handy in any civilized state. He gave instructions to polish a number of aspects concerning the practical implementation of the project, including the choice of the operating agency.
