Human rights commissioners in Russia ask Prosecutor General why prisoners are sent to fight in Ukraine

KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO – SUNDAY, 18 SEPTEMBER 2022, 23:00

Six members of the Human Rights Council under the President of the Russian Federation have asked Igor Krasnov, the Prosecutor General of Russia, to explain why prisoners who have not yet served their sentences were being sent to fight in Ukraine.

Source: Appeal posted on the St Petersburg Human Rights Council website on Sunday, 18 September

Details: The appeal recounts widespread information concerning the fact that throughout Russia, thousands of prisoners with unserved sentences, including those for serious crimes, were being sent to take part in the so-called "special military operation" in Ukraine. In particular, this was discussed on air of the Rossiya-1 (Russia-1) TV channel on 7 August.

Human rights commissioners stress that the only grounds for releasing a prisoner who has not yet finished serving their sentence are: pardon by the decree of the President of the Russian Federation, amnesty by the resolution of the State Duma (Russian parliament), or parole issued in a court decision.

Quote: "In relation to the above, and if this information is true, we ask you to explain on what grounds the aforementioned individuals are released from serving their sentences."

More details: The appeal was signed by six members of the Presidential Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights, namely, Alexandr Verkhovsky, Natalia Evdokimova, Igor Kalyapin, Eva Merkacheva, Vladimir Ryakhovsky and Nikolai Svanidze.

Background:

• On 4 July, Russian media reported that prisoners in St Petersburg were being recruited as "volunteers" to fight in Ukraine as part of the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC).
• On 20 July, Wagner PMC [private military company] was reported to have recruited fighters from among prisoners in around a dozen Russian prisons.
• Later on, most of the fighters Wagner PMC recruited from two Russian prisons to fight in Ukraine have been reported as being killed.
• On 14 September, a video of Yevgenii Prigozhyn [Russian oligarch who is close to Vladimir Putin and is behind the Wagner PMC], personally encouraging Russian prisoners to go to war in Ukraine, was shared online.
• In a comment about reports that prisoners were being recruited to participate in the war in Ukraine, Prigozhyn suggested that those who disagree with such recruitment methods should send their own children to fight instead.

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