Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia

Saint Petersburg University

Anti-alcohol legal policy

and anti-alcohol legislation

Soviet state:

history lessons and ways to improve

St. Petersburg

INTRODUCTION

Among the social vices causing now Special attention of humanity the most massive, without a doubt, are drunkenness and alcoholism. Their influence in one way or another affects all spheres of human life, affects the interests of all social groups - the entire social organism. In times of crisis in the development of society, the force of the impact of drunkenness and alcoholism increases significantly, which, in turn, stimulates the development of other destructive phenomena and processes.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in many countries in last years The death rate from alcoholism has risen sharply and is second only to deaths from alcoholism. cardiovascular diseases and cancer. With a global per capita alcohol consumption of 5 liters of absolute alcohol, alcoholic beverages are responsible for 6.3% of deaths per year. Alcohol abuse reduces the average life expectancy of a person by 15-20 years. Despite this, alcohol consumption around the world, including in Russia, is growing from year to year. In the RSFSR, the number of alcoholics, including adolescents, was 1,628 per 100,000 people in 1987; at the beginning of 1991, the number of alcoholics in Russia reached 4.6 million.

The expansion of the scale of drunkenness and alcoholism is facilitated by the continuous growth in the production of domestic and import of foreign alcoholic products, its illegal circulation. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, there are about a hundred criminal groups operating in the country, "specializing" in the illegal production and trade in alcohol. Their monthly income exceeds 1 billion denominated rubles. In 1997 alone, more than 700 underground shops for the production of alcoholic beverages were uncovered by organized crime officers, more than 600 tons of counterfeit products were seized.

Sobriety and alcoholism are a social norm and a social pathology. In order to strengthen the first and successfully combat the second, it is necessary to consistently and gradually develop anti-alcohol legislation. It is an integral element of public administration, one of the means of orienting the behavior of an individual or social group to a lifestyle free from alcohol, and, at the same time, a means of social control over their alcoholic behavior. The aggravation of the alcohol situation in Russia calls for the development of effective measures to counter the growing alcoholism. In this regard, the use of positive historical experience in the development of the anti-alcohol legislation of the Soviet state becomes extremely relevant.

The relevance of the scientific development of this topic is also due to its insufficient study in legal science, the need for state and public institutions in domestic and foreign experience in lawmaking in the field of legal regulation alcohol problems, as well as the tasks of further improvement of modern anti-alcohol legislation.

CHAPTER I

1. Theoretical foundations for the formation of the anti-alcohol policy of the Soviet state

In the autumn of 1895, in the life of the Russian Social Democracy, historical event: under the leadership of all the Marxist circles of St. Petersburg were united into a single political organization: the first proletarian party of Russia, named in December the “Union of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class”. On the night of December 8-9, Lenin and a significant group of his comrades-in-arms were arrested for organizing workers' strikes. While in prison, Lenin continued research on economic development country and began working on the book The Development of Capitalism in Russia.

In March 1899, under the pseudonym “Vladimir Ilyin”, the book “The Development of Capitalism in Russia. The process of formation of an internal market for large-scale industry”. In it, Lenin first addressed the characterization of the capitalist evolution of distillation. What conclusion did Vladimir Ilyich come to? “The expansion of the potato culture by landowners and wealthy peasants means an increase in the demand for hired labor ... Thus, if the number of workers engaged in distillation proper has decreased, then, on the other hand, the displacement of labor service by the capitalist system of economy with a culture of root crops increased the demand for rural day laborers” (7, 287-288).

The results of a further study of the nature of the activities of the drinking monopoly Lenin outlined in January-February 1901 in Random Notes. In particular, he wrote: “What kind of benefits our official and semi-official press expected from her: an increase in state revenues and an improvement in the product and a decrease in drunkenness! But in fact, instead of increasing incomes, so far it has only been an increase in the price of wine, the confusion of the budget, the inability to accurately determine financial results the whole operation; instead of improving the product, it turned out to be worse ... Instead of reducing drunkenness, there was an increase in the number of places for the secret sale of wine, an increase in police income from these places, the opening of wine shops against the will of the population, petitioning otherwise, increased drunkenness on the streets ”(8, 421).

The eighth issue of Iskra published an article by V.I. "noble distillers" (10, 87).

The Fifth All-Russian Congress of Soviets opened on July 4, 1918 in Moscow at the Bolshoi Theatre. As a speaker on the activity, Lenin said the following: “Next to the mass of difficulties, next to the mass of mistakes, next to the cases that we do not cover up at all, but drag out into the light, to shame - those cases when our detachments themselves fall into speculation, into that slippery abyss into which all the habits, all the skills of the capitalists are being dragged—yes, these cases are everywhere, we know that it is impossible to remake people all at once, that it is impossible to inspire tens of millions of people at once to believe in socialism (where will they get this faith? From their own head? - From my experience) ...

Therefore, comrades, no matter how difficult and no matter how difficult the period that we have to go through, we must tell the whole truth and open our eyes to this, for only the people, by their initiative and their organization, putting forward new and new conditions and defending the socialist republic, will help us ” (5, 510, 513).

Due to loss during civil war(August 6, 1918) of large oil fields and the crisis state of the availability of liquid fuel, necessary for military and civilian vehicles, aviation and health needs, the country's leadership is making an attempt to monopolize distillery production. If we talk about figures, then about 90% of all alcohol produced in the country was spent for these needs. In this regard, despite the terrible famine during the years. 1.500.000 were processed; in years; in pounds of potatoes at distilleries (15, 11-12).

Further activities of the Supreme Council of the National Economy were aimed at the nationalization of distilleries and distilleries in order to replenish state stocks of alcoholic beverages. In this regard, the Supreme Council of National Economy adopts two resolutions: “On the nationalization of distilleries and distilleries” (9) and “On the nationalization of yeast-distilleries” (10). According to the decrees, distilleries, distilleries, and yeast distilleries were declared state property and transferred to the jurisdiction of the chemical industry department of the Supreme Council of National Economy. The nationalization of enterprises for the production of alcoholic beverages began on October 26, 1918 and ended on February 10, 1919, when the Supreme Economic Council issued an explanation “On the extension of the decree on the nationalization of distillation and alcohol purification to vodka factories” (14). In fact, since February 1919, the state drinking monopoly has been introduced everywhere in the Soviet state.

On December 19, 1919, the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, V. Ulyanov (Lenin), signed a decree "On the prohibition on the territory of the RSFSR of the manufacture and sale of alcohol, strong drinks and alcohol-containing substances that are not related to drinks." Many Soviet scientists believed that this was a dry law adopted by the Bolsheviks at a culminating time for the state, that there was continuity between it and the dry law of 1914. Is it so? To answer these questions, consider the content of this decree.

In accordance with the law, “everywhere in the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic it is prohibited to manufacture, without permission, alcohol, strong drinks and alcohol-containing substances that do not belong to drinks from any supplies or materials, by any means, of any strength and in any quantity, alcoholic beverages and substances nor were prepared” (8, 45). This article confirms previous decrees that only the Soviet government has the right to produce alcoholic beverages, and no one else. Now citizens no longer had the right to make wine for home use. It is not difficult to predict how this may end in the future. In pre-revolutionary Russia, this led to korchemstvo, i.e., the illegal production and sale of alcoholic beverages.

The second article of the decree forbade the sale of alcohol, spirits and alcohol-containing substances to private individuals for drinking purposes.

The third, fourth and fifth articles of the law gave clarifications on the degrees of strength of alcoholic beverages. So, “drinks are recognized strong, if the content of wine alcohol in them exceeds one and a half percent (degree) according to Tralles. For grape wines, the fortress is allowed no more than twelve degrees.

Drinks with a lower content of wine alcohol, as well as koumiss and kefir, are not considered strong and are allowed, in the absence of stupefying or unhealthy impurities, for free sale.

The use of hops in the manufacture of weak drinks is not prohibited.

Alcohol-containing substances are recognized as non-beverage wood alcohol, fusel oil (waste and distillates from the purification of alcohol) and other alcohols, as well as their solutions of any strength, except for wine alcohol and its solutions.

Under wine alcohol of course ethanol, not subjected to denaturation” (8, 45-46).

If we talk about the next two articles, they regulated the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages. “Sale of alcohol, strong drinks and non-drink alcohol-containing substances, - as noted in the 6th article, - for technical (medical, pharmaceutical, chemical, educational and scientific, etc.) needs, as well as for export outside the border is produced exclusively from nationalized or state-registered factories and establishments that produce these drinks and substances, from warehouses, pharmacies and other places of trade, to which this sale is allowed by the government” (8, 46).

The manufacture of alcoholic beverages was carried out, as well as sale, at factories and institutions nationalized or registered by the state.

The procedure and conditions for the sale of alcoholic beverages were determined by the Supreme Council of the National Economy in agreement with the People's Commissariats of Internal Affairs and Health.

A subsequent article of the law established penalties for the illegal production of alcoholic beverages “... in places not permitted by law, from any supplies, by any means, in any quantity and in any strength” (8 , 46). The legislator identified the following types of punishment:

Confiscation of alcohol, supplies, materials, as well as apparatus and devices for the production of alcoholic products;

Confiscation of all property;

Imprisonment with forced labor for a term not less than 5 years.

The same punishment was imposed on those guilty of “complicity in secret distillation and aiding it, as well as those guilty of selling, transferring, acquiring, storing, carrying and transporting illegally smoked alcohol” (8, 47).

Article 9 listed the acts for which the perpetrators were subject to the penalties listed above:

“a) for the deliberate breaking of seals and other security marks imposed by representatives of the Inspectorate of Indirect Taxes and the Department of the Distillery Industry on control shells and distillation apparatus, when through this access to alcohol vapors or alcohol is opened before it is taken into account by the control shell;

b) for the installation of devices that serve to stop, damage or incorrect operation of the control projectile and to remove alcohol vapors or alcohol before it is counted by the control projectile;

c) for the secret release of alcohol, wine and vodka products from the place of their legal storage or location;

d) for the release from places of legal storage or location of any kind of alcohol-containing products and mixtures of a medicinal and technical nature for unintended needs;

e) for the sale, purchase, storage, carrying and transportation of secretly released alcohol, wine and vodka products, as well as illegally dispensed alcohol products and mixtures of a medicinal and technical nature (paragraphs "c" and "d" of this article);

e) for distillation, straining, flavoring and for any processing in general of denatured alcohol, varnish, varnish and other products and mixtures containing alcohol, not intended for drinking, in order to isolate alcohol or weaken their special taste, smell or color, for sale, transfer, purchase, storage, transportation and carrying of such processed alcohol, varnish, varnish and other products and mixtures containing alcohol;

g) for the preparation of products and mixtures of a medicinal or technical nature from legally obtained alcohol with such deviations from the established rules that make it possible to easily extract alcohol or use the products or mixtures as an intoxicating drink; for the sale, transfer, acquisition or possession for sale of such illegally manufactured products and mixtures;

h) for the preparation or storage for sale, as well as for the sale of any kind of strong drinks, i.e., with an alcohol content above the permitted limit, or with the addition of intoxicating or harmful substances” (8, 47-48).

Persons found guilty of arranging, acquiring or storing stills and devices for the production of alcoholic beverages without proper permission were subject to confiscation of these items and imprisonment with forced labor for a period of at least one year. The same punishment was imposed on the guilty who made distillation apparatus from samovars, boilers or other utensils, as well as persons involved in the sale, transfer, acquisition, carrying and transportation of such distillation equipment.

In addition, deprivation of liberty with forced labor for a period of at least one year was supposed for the following unlawful acts:

For drinking illegally prepared or illegally obtained spirits in public places and in all kinds of establishments;

For appearing in a public place while intoxicated.

If the crime envisaged by the first article was committed in the process of discharging their functional duties, then cases of these violations were considered by emergency commissions and revolutionary tribunals according to their affiliation.

An analysis of the so-called dry law showed that there was no question of any prohibition of the production and sale of alcoholic beverages by the Soviet state. The decree reaffirmed the state's monopoly on the production, transportation and sale of spirits.

The problem of alcohol consumption in Russia and the external effects of excessive alcohol abuse. Government policy to reduce alcohol consumption. Externalities of alcohol consumption and their relationship to anti-alcohol policy. Most of the authors are based on foreign data, however, on this moment there are already a number of works devoted to the characteristics of alcohol consumption Russian population and evaluating the effectiveness of anti-alcohol policy measures in Russia...

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It is interesting to trace the various anti-alcohol measures in Russia. It is known that until the 15th century in Russia they drank mainly honey, beer and imported wine, and from the middle of the 16th century vodka spread. In the time of Ivan 4, taverns appeared. But even then, decrees and orders of statesmen and representatives of the clergy were periodically issued, restricting the consumption of alcoholic beverages or providing for various punishments for "vile drunkards." Under Peter the Great, for example, punishments were introduced for drunkards - they were beaten with sticks or put in pits.

Our country, like other countries, has gone through the practice of "dry law". In 1914, the tsarist government banned the sale of wine from the beginning of the imperialist war. In 1916, a complete ban on the sale of alcohol was introduced. This ban was also in effect after the October Socialist Revolution. However, studies of that time indicate that immediately after the ban was introduced, various surrogates began to be used in the country, mainly moonshine.

This subsequently led to the fact that our state introduced a wine monopoly. In 1922, the sale of 20% vodka was allowed, in 1924 - 30%, in October 1925 - 40% vodka. This indicates that in our country this seemingly radical measure did not give positive results Khukhriy A., Tarakanov A. Some lessons from the history of the struggle for sobriety. - Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 1988. S. 77 ..

A successful fight against alcoholism is possible only with the implementation of complex measures of influence of a social, medical, pedagogical and administrative nature, as well as with the participation of the entire population in it.

In the general complex of measures to combat alcoholism, anti-alcohol propaganda plays a significant role, the main goal of which is to form an intolerant attitude towards the use of alcohol among the population.

One of the existing shortcomings of anti-alcohol propaganda is the lack of a dynamic feedback with the population. In many cases, it remains unclear what kind of response in various audiences find certain forms of educational work to combat alcoholism.

This shortcoming, as early as 1976, was corrected by employees of the anti-alcohol laboratory of the Novosibirsk Medical Institute, who developed a special questionnaire that allows for static analysis.

Thanks to this questionnaire, at present, the staff of this laboratory confidently assert that the most effective methods of propaganda are conversations conducted by people who have recovered from alcoholism, individual conversations of the doctor Korolenko Ts.P., Timofeev A.S. Roots of alcoholism. N. Novosibirskoe book publishing house, 2006. S. 177 ..

The reasons for the ineffectiveness of other methods (watching films and programs on anti-alcohol topics) are that too great attention they focus on inducing fear of alcohol. It is known from psychology that influences aimed at causing fear in modern society, as a rule, do not give positive results. In addition, the fear of drinking alcohol should stem from the awareness of long-term consequences: the development of alcoholism, damage to internal organs, and the impact on offspring. But people who enjoy alcohol tend to live in the present and are not so focused on the future developments as to seriously think about them.

One of the main features of modern society is a sharp increase in the influx of information and the speed of decision-making per unit of time. In this regard, the speed and content of human mental processes increase and its adaptive capabilities as a whole increase.

These changes in psychology can also be traced in the reactions that arise in the process of anti-alcohol work, since it affects various areas of life and includes medical, psychological, socio-economic approaches.

To popularize the correct attitude towards alcoholism, knowledge of the essence of alcoholism, clarity and intelligibility of definitions is important. The resistance that one often encounters reflects people's deeply rooted ideas that an alcoholic is just a "descended person", that an acquaintance, relative, work colleague "drinks like others", "is no different", etc. d Rozhnov VE Guide to psychotherapy. Tashkent: Publishing House "Medicine", 1985. S. 82 ..

In the general complex of the fight against alcoholism in our city, as well as throughout the country, compulsory treatment plays, especially at the request of family members of an alcoholic, or his relatives.

Most patients with chronic alcoholism undergo treatment on a voluntary basis. However, a certain percentage of patients refuse treatment for various reasons, and primarily because they do not consider themselves sick; treatment of such patients is carried out against their will.

From these positions, it is necessary to analyze the justification for compulsory treatment from the psychological and medical positions of the laws of this action. The experience of Russian narcologists and narcologists from other countries suggests that the treatment of patients with alcoholism stops the process, prevents the occurrence of degradation, various complications and prevents the death of patients, often returning them to work. Thus, the medical justification of compulsory treatment does not require proof.

But is the population psychologically ready for this? We analyzed the appeals of relatives of patients with alcoholism to the Psychoneurological dispensary of our city. This analysis showed that all clearly require intervention, even in cases where patients do not want to be treated. Everyone talks about the psychological justification of such an intervention. Thus, the psychological justification is not in doubt. There have never been any claims from the population when patients were involved in compulsory treatment. This is very important - the psychological atmosphere, psychological justification.

Compulsory treatment is also important because alcoholics who refuse treatment harm not only their body, but society as a whole, because they are active distributors of negative alcohol habits and traditions.

When deciding on compulsory treatment, there are two criteria - social and medical.

The social criterion affects the following main indicators - violation of the norms of behavior in society, in the family, a negative impact on the upbringing of children, the failure of the application of educational and administrative measures.

The medical criterion consists of the following provisions - chronic alcohol abuse, failure of previous treatment or refusal of treatment, severe cases of chronic, late stage alcoholism.

Thus, the anti-alcohol policy in the city of Novosibirsk is mainly represented by anti-alcohol propaganda in educational institutions at various levels, as well as in enterprises; and its methods are quite varied, as has been shown above. As well as the general complex of the fight against alcoholism is compulsory treatment.

Rice. one. Alcohol consumption in Russia by type (Global status report on alcohol and health, 2014)

Russia has long been considered one of the most drinking countries in the world. The diagram shows the statistics of alcohol consumption in Russia up to 2010. In the 1990s, the consumption of strong alcohol increased sharply, which led to a significant deterioration in the health of citizens. The diagram shows that while the consumption of strong alcohol has been declining since the 2000s, the consumption of wine and beer has increased significantly.

Since 2009 in accordance with the Decree of the Government Russian Federation No. 2128-r. the Concept of State Policy to reduce the scale of alcohol abuse and prevent alcoholism among the population is being implemented.

In most regions, regional targeted programs to reduce the consumption of alcoholic products, as well as various promotional activities. The concept for reducing the scale of alcohol abuse states that measures to combat alcohol should fall not only on the shoulders of the Ministry of Health, but also be distributed among other executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. For example, one of the measures to combat alcoholism is the development of mass sports.

Rice. 2. Alcohol consumption per capita

This systematic approach is already producing results. The diagram shows that from 2008 to 2014, the consumption of alcoholic products in terms of absolute alcohol decreased by 4.42 liters per person. At the same time, it should be answered that such consumption of alcoholic products is calculated without taking into account the shadow market. According to experts, another 5-8 liters per year can be added to these numbers.

Moreover, it should be noted that there is a significant difference in alcohol consumption between regions of the country. According to Rosstat, in the southern regions of our country (Rostov, Samara Region, the Republic of Ingushetia, Alania, etc.) alcohol consumption is lower when, as in Chukotka, Nenets autonomous regions, Kamchatka Territory, Magadan Region.

A study conducted in 2010 at the Higher School of Economics made it possible to identify factors influencing alcohol consumption at the macro and micro levels (ie, at the regional and individual levels).

At the regional levels, the authors separately analyzed the consumption of various alcoholic beverages - vodka, wine, beer, etc. Based on the regression analysis carried out by the authors, it was concluded that the main macroeconomic determinant that determines interregional differences in alcohol consumption is the average per capita income. The indicator of the share of the unemployed, included in all constructed models with a negative sign, can be considered as an indirect characteristic of income, since, all other things being equal, an increase in unemployment leads to a decrease in average per capita income and vice versa. The structure of the population of the region by sex, which was reflected in the indicator "share of the male population" turned out to be a significant factor only in the model of vodka consumption. Consumption of hard and low-alcohol beverages shows a strong relationship

The number of patients in drug treatment facilities decreased from 381,393 in 2009 to 293,122 in 2013. The rate of primary incidence of substance abuse disorders decreased by 23%.

According to Rosstat, the maximum peak of alcohol consumption was in 2003, and this was reflected in the incidence of alcoholism in adolescents. Then, during the period of stability and economic prosperity of our country, we see that the number of adolescents diagnosed with alcoholism decreased to 919 thousand people and continued to slowly decrease.

Rice. 3. Alcohol consumption by adolescents aged 14-17

In connection with the serious incidence of alcoholism among adolescents, the Ministry of Health of Russia developed and issued an order dated October 6, 2014 No. 581n "On the procedure for conducting preventive medical examinations of students in general educational organizations and professional educational organizations, as well as educational organizations higher education for the purpose of early detection of illegal consumption of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances." The implementation of this order will allow us to identify significantly more cases of alcoholism among adolescents and take measures, which will subsequently lead to a decrease in alcohol-related deaths.

On the background common problem with alcoholism, the problem of child alcoholism in our country is especially acute. According to the Ministry of Health of Russia and the National Scientific Center for Narcology highest level teenage alcoholism was recorded in 2003 and made 1270.9 per 100 thousand teenage population. In comparison with 1999, its growth was 65%. The graph shows that after the start of an active policy to combat alcoholism, the rate of alcoholics among adolescents has significantly decreased. This speaks to the effectiveness of policies for young people, with rare exceptions, regions that lead in the consumption of low-alcohol drinks are also leaders in the consumption of hard drinks (Kossova et al., 2012).