In Kabardino-Balkaria, SIZO inmates from Ingushetia and Chechnya hold hunger strike

Ten residents of Ingushetia and two of Chechnya, kept at the pre-trial detention facility (SIZO) in the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, are on full hunger strike since October 21.

According to Magomed Gandarov, advocate of three of the hunger-strikers, the reason of the protest action was the unreasonable procrastination of the judicial investigation on the cases of 12 defendants united into one consolidated cause.

According to Mr Gandarov, the hunger-strikers have basically same crime attributes. In June 2008, the investigation was over; however, trials last for four months already. The case is considered by a jury. The investigation on these cases has been conducted by the Russian State Office of Public Prosecutor since 2005-2006. The advocate asserts that all the 12 persons are innocent, but they are subjected to violent torture and beatings and forced to sign confessions of guilt. Relatives and advocates were not admitted to them.

Timur Akiev, head of the representative office of the Human Rights Centre "Memorial" in Ingushetia, said that he was following the process from the very beginning and was indignant with the fact that the case of these 12 defendants was deliberately procrastinated, as the Regnum Agency reports.

In his turn, Ahmed Abidov, head of the Department of the Federal Correction Service for the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), has stated that the defendants have no complaints against the employees of the SIZO, and that Russian penitentiary establishments never use methods of physical or psychological influence on inmates, as the "Interfax" reports.