Relatives of convicted natives of Northern Caucasus report about hunger strike at IK-7 in Mordovia

At the Penal Colony No. 7 (known as IK-7) of the Department for the Republic of Mordovia of the Russian Federal Correction Service (FSIN), a group of prisoners, most of them being natives from Northern Caucasus, went on a hunger strike to protest against their custody conditions, as well as they way they are treated by the colony personnel, relatives of the prisoners report. So far, there was no official confirmation of the protest action from the prison administration.

The hunger strike was announced on March 28 and lasts for a month already, Magomed, a relative of one of the prisoners, told the "Caucasian Knot", asking not to name him, because he fears for the safety of his relative, kept in that jail.

"The above high security IK-7 of the Russia's FSIN, located in the Republic of Mordovia, keeps inmates of a lot of Caucasian nationalities," said the source, adding that the attitude towards Caucasians in the colony is "just awful." In total, there are at least 30 hunger-strikers; however, the overall composition of protesters is constantly changing, as the colony bosses, having learned about the protest, try not solve the problem, but find reason to punish the prisoners and put them into the dungeon."

According to Magomed, the protesters refuse to take food, but drink water, kissel (jelly) or tea. "You won't keel long on a full hunger strike, since their aim is to attract the attention of independent human rights defenders, prosecutors and other oversight bodies to the situation in the IK-7 and eliminate the violations," said the source.

He said that Muslim prisoners complain of pressure exerted by colony personnel against administering their religious rituals - prayers (namaz) and reading allowed Islamic literature.

As explained by the mother of one of the convicted resident of the Krasnodar Territory, the claims are not only religious in nature. "Mordovia has a cold and humid climate - the winter lasts there for 7-8 months, while prisoners are kept in concrete cells. Healthy inmates can be kept with those suffering from neglected forms of tuberculosis. My son, like most of them, is sick with scabies. The reason is not that they sloppy, but in the absence of minimum medical care. Any inmate's claim or complaint is the reason to put him into a dungeon," the woman complains.

According to her story, the hunger strike will continue as long as the prisoners are met by activists of human rights organizations.

The hunger-strikers, as she said, are mostly natives of Adygea, North Ossetia, Dagestan, Armenia, Chechnya and the Krasnodar Territory.

The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has tried to contact the colony boss, but, as explained by the attendant on duty, who picked up the phone, he was not there. The attendant refused to comment on the situation in the absence of his boss.