Analysis Report

In Russia, the prisoners are dragged around

6,000 km, silenced journey, utmost opacity.

— Published 13 December 2017.

“The prisoner becomes a package that is sent from a point A to a point B along some cunning logistical route” – Ivan Pavlov, human rights lawyer

A 3.5 square meter train wagon shared by 20 prisoners for journeys going up to a month: welcome to the reality of prisoners who are being transported in Russia. A report from Amnesty International researcher Heather McGill shows the harsh reality faced by prisoners transported across 6,000 km and 11 different times zones to remote penal colonies. They are often placed thousands of kilometers away from their relatives.

The practice of sending prisoners far away is a tradition that was established centuries before.