Police to be given more extensive powers to fight crime and protect wi tnesses

The heads of voivodship police headquarters met yesterday with Interior Minister Krzysztof Janik to discuss future legislative changes aimed at increasing police powers. The most significant change to the current r egulations presented by Janik was that of granting police the right to "blackmail" criminals. This would allow officers to use criminals as u nder-cover agents to solve crimes - an activity currently unlawful. The Interior Minister also demands wider use of anonymous witnesses as it has often been noted in the past that the names of witnesses were available to criminals. "We need to introduce procedural changes to the penal code. I want to limit the possibility of revealing the personal data of witnesses," said Minister Janik. The Interior Ministry also plans to introduce changes to the act concerning possession of weapons. Ministers are considering granting gun licenses for "home protection". Such weapons would not be allowed to be carried, but would have to be secured in the house and used only during an assault. (Zycie, June 15-16, p. 3) A.K.