Navalny Describes Harsh Arctic Prison Conditions During Court Testimony
Alexey Navalny, imprisoned Kremlin critic, highlights the bitterly cold conditions at his Arctic prison during a court appearance via video link He firmly presents his case against the authorities at the Siberian penal colony
Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny raised concerns about the freezing conditions at his Siberian penal colony during a video appearance in a Moscow court. He described enduring harsh conditions, including freezing temperatures and strict time limits on eating, since being transferred to the Arctic prison.
He informed the Moscow supreme court judge that it is not feasible to eat within 10 minutes. Eating a meal within such a short time frame would make the process rather difficult. He went on to explain that the punishment cell is typically very cold, and people often use a newspaper to cover themselves and stay warm while sleeping. He stressed the importance of having a newspaper in order to avoid freezing in such conditions.
The opposition figure is suing the prison authorities over the conditions of his detention.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is pictured during an at the office of his Anti-corruption Foundation (FBK) in Moscow on January 16, 2018.
Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images/File
Navalny, a jailed critic of the Kremlin, appeared in court for the first time since being moved to a Siberian penal colony. Concerns for his well-being grew after his team was unable to reach him for two weeks in December. Finally, on December 25, his team located him at the Kharp penal colony.
Navalny claims that the authorities are restricting the number of religious texts he can access, stating: "The regulations state that I am allowed to have only 10 books. I require 2 books for religious purposes, and having just one book is insufficient and violates my religious rights."
"I insist on having 10 books in my cell. I need them for both educational and religious purposes."
Navalny claims that the limit is imposed to hinder the practice of Islam and that new restrictions are constantly being imposed, such as the prohibition of Muslim rosary beads, while allowing the use of Christian crosses. In response to the allegations of discriminatory treatment towards Muslim inmates, the Justice Ministry representative dismissed Navalny's claims as "political statements."
The representative informed the judge that prison officers are allowed to bring Navalny up to 10 books per day, with no restrictions, but he can only keep one book in his cell overnight. Navalny was sentenced to 19 years in prison in August of last year after being convicted of creating an extremist community, financing extremist activities, and various other crimes. Prior to this sentence, he was already serving an 11-and-a-half-year sentence in a maximum security facility for fraud and other charges that he denies.
Supporters of Navalny claim his arrest and incarceration are a politically motivated attempt to stifle his criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
