Navalni goes to the infamous prison… “It terribly ruins the prisoner.”

There are concerns about Navalni’s personal affairs amid the fact that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalni has been transferred to a prison in Vladimir, Russia. The prison where Navalni will live in prison is known as a place where’political criminals’ are mainly detained and frequently subjected to harsh acts.

According to the Moscow Times of Russia on the 28th of last month (local time), Russian authorities said that Navalni was transferred to the Pokrov IK-2 prison in Vladimir, which is three hours away from the capital Moscow. Earlier, on the 2nd of last month, Navalni was sentenced to two years and six months in prison for failing to comply with the conditions of probation, which was sentenced for fraud.

The problem is that the prison where Navalni will serve is notorious for its cruelty against inmates. According to the Moscow Times, the IK-2 prison is the most common of the four types of correctional facilities in Russia, but political prisoners in Russia are frequently detained and psychological and physical abuse of prisoners is frequent.

“IK-2 is a completely lawless zone,” said Pyotr Kuryanov, a lawyer at the Russian inmates’ human rights protection group. “All kinds of sadistic practices have been around for a long time. They eventually ruin the inmates.” In fact, a prisoner who served two years in the prison on charges of robbery claimed to the Moscow Times that he had been routinely beaten by prison guards and other inmates during his incarceration.

In particular, it was pointed out that famous political prisoners such as Navalni, who are attracting attention from the international community, are at greater risk of mental abuse than physical abuse such as physical violence. Opposition activist Konstantin Kotov, who had been imprisoned at IK-2 for a year and a half until the end of last year on charges of attending an illegal rally, argued that “the correctional authorities were monitored every step of the way.” “It was for the purpose of psychological isolation that the Russian authorities transferred Navalni to IK-2,” he said. “To make it psychologically endangered, even conversations with other prisoners were prohibited.”

Ruslan Bahanov, an activist of the Russian inmates human rights organization, told Reuters that “other prisoners who have been working with the prisons monitor certain inmates from a close range, and if they violate the strict schedule, they immediately abuse them.” . “If the prison side tried to isolate Navalni, no one would even be able to talk to him,” he added.

Here, Navalni is unlikely to receive a lawyer or outside help. The Moscow Times cited prisoners who had actually served, and reported that at the IK-2 prison, prison guards read and process letters sent or received by prisoners, and communication with the outside takes a long time. Kotov’s lawyer, a political prisoner, told the South China Morning Post (SCMP), “Kotov has agreed to give up the right to secret interviews with lawyers after less than a day in prison.” It is the best place to live in prison.”

IK-2 correctional authorities declined to comment on Navalni’s personal affairs. However, on the 26th of last month, the head of the Russian Federation Penal Enforcement Bureau, Alexander Kalashnikov, said, “I am confident that there will be no harm to health or life,” and that “Navalni will be detained under completely equal conditions.”

Reporter Seok Kyung-min [email protected]