Russian authorities to close 2 prisons as nearly all prisoners sent to war
Illustrative photo (Photo: Getty Images)
In the near future, two colonies in the Krasnoyarsk region of Russia will be closed. Almost all prisoners have been sent to war against Ukraine, according to the human rights ombudsman in the Krasnoyarsk region, Mark Denisov.
It is noted that two corrective labor institutions that are part of the structure of the Main Directorate of the Federal Penitentiary Service of the Russian Federation will be closed in the near future.
Denisov spoke before deputies with a report on the work done in 2023 and noted that the number of complaints about the operation of penitentiary institutions in the region decreased by a quarter compared to 2022.
However, Denisov immediately acknowledged that this was because there were fewer prisoners, and because of this, even the colonies themselves had to be closed. He clarified that "a one-time large reduction in the number of convicts" occurred in the conditions of the Russian war against Ukraine.
Colonies may reopen over time
The material writes that there are several corrective colonies in the Krasnoyarsk region where men serving sentences under strict regimes are incarcerated.
Denisov is confident that the closure of colonies is a temporary phenomenon and they will have to be reopened later.
He added that "the war will sooner or later end and everything will return to normal, as the social structure of society has not changed."
Russia uses prisoners for war against Ukraine
Russia began recruiting prisoners in the first year of full-scale invasion. This was done by the founder of the PMC Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
However, after his death, the Russian National Guard began recruiting former prisoners who served in the PMC Wagner to subdue the remnants of mercenaries and strengthen its role as an internal security agency.
It has recently become known that the Russian Ministry of Defense has started recruiting women from prisons and offering them to go to war against Ukraine as assault troops or snipers.
And recently, the State Duma of the Russian Federation supported bills allowing convicts for rape to enter into contracts with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. Thus, rapists will be able to go to war in Ukraine.
