Relatives of prisoners in the Taganrog pretrial detention center fear for their health.

The condition of Muslim prisoners on a hunger strike in the Taganrog pretrial detention center is rapidly deteriorating; some have even mutilated themselves to draw attention to the problems. The prison administration is failing to address the violations, and the Federal Penitentiary Service and the prosecutor's office are responding to complaints with formal replies.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," ten Muslim prisoners in the Taganrog pretrial detention center refused food and water in protest against the systematic violation of their rights. According to the detainees, they were unlawfully deprived of personal belongings, hygiene products, exercise, and phone calls. The first person to go on hunger strike was Zaur Dzuev, a native of Nalchik, on March 27. Nine more people later joined, including Magomed Khanilaev, a native of Dagestan; Ramazan Albekov from Chechnya; Gegham Rostomyan, a native of Armenia; Ramazan Orlov, a native of Stavropol; and others.

The dry hunger strike of Muslim prisoners in the Taganrog pretrial detention center involves not ten, but several dozen people, Magomed Khanilaev's wife, Maria, told the "Caucasian Knot." "I know that their health is rapidly deteriorating, and the administration isn't particularly cooperating. They're still being fed empty promises and promised that conditions will improve," she said.

She learned about the inspections and searches, which targeted exclusively Muslim prisoners, around January 25th. According to Maria, all personal belongings were confiscated from the prisoners at the time, including personal hygiene products, which are generally permitted, as well as permitted food and clothing.

“Everything was confiscated. This became clear when the boys showed up to meet with their lawyer in T-shirts, and it was very cold at the time. They explained that all their personal belongings had been confiscated. Some of their personal belongings were partially returned, but not in full, while others were not returned at all. Furthermore, since then, they have stopped being taken to the bathhouse to wash, many have been denied phone calls, and practically everyone has been denied walks since then. Their patience ran out, and they declared a hunger strike, the first being Zaur Dzuev,” she said.

Maria added that, overall, the living conditions of prisoners in the Taganrog pretrial detention center do not meet any standards. "I don't even want to talk about the conditions there; they're terrible, the cells are terrible. I personally sent electrodes so the staff could solder the batteries. It's damp, there's no heating, plaster falls on their heads, it's completely unsanitary, rodents, insects, and cockroaches are running around," she said.

Khanilaev's wife filed complaints with the prosecutor's office and the Federal Penitentiary Service, but to no avail. "I received these formal replies: 'We've conducted an inspection, everything is fine.' Of course, nothing changed after that. You can imagine that the guys had run out of patience, and so they declared a dry hunger strike. I know that some of the young people there, I think it was Orlov and Alikperov, even mutilated themselves to draw attention to their problems," Maria noted.

The wife of the first hunger striker, Zaur Dzuev, learned about the prisoners' protest from a lawyer. On April 7, Ruzana Dzueva learned that her husband had also harmed himself.

“There had been complaints about rights violations before. According to my information, for five months he was never taken out for a walk, his personal belongings were taken and never returned, and recently they stopped taking him to the bathhouse. Information was received that he cut open his stomach—I don't know the reason, perhaps physical force was used. After that, he was placed in solitary confinement for 15 days,” she said. Dzueva noted that she has no information about a ban on prayer for religious prisoners.

For four months now, Muslim hunger striker Gegham Rostomyan hasn't been allowed out for walks in the pretrial detention center, hasn't been taken to the bathhouse, and hasn't been allowed to call his family, despite a court order allowing him to make numerous calls, said his mother, Zamira Botasheva.

“Around the same time in January, they took away all his belongings, including personal hygiene products, documents, medications, and so on. We have to constantly buy him everything he needs from the FSIN store or send it by mail—and we're afraid the officers will take it all away again. Other prisoners don't have their personal belongings taken away, only prisoners like my son,” she told a Caucasian Knot correspondent.

Zamira Botasheva noted that packages, parcels, and visits are permitted. "But we don't know for sure what's reaching him, but he listed during the visit what was given and what wasn't. At first, he was protective of us and thought he could resolve everything peacefully, but things got worse. Although, according to him, no physical violence was used against him. I hope that remains the case," she explained.

Botasheva indicated that complaints about his detention in the pretrial detention center have been sent to four organizations. She, like Dzueva, was unable to comment on the situation regarding religious rites. "I don't know about prayer; my son didn't say they were forbidden to pray. But they say they provoke a lot, and as far as I understand, our son didn't succumb to the provocation," she stated.

The mother of hunger striker Ramazan Orlov was able to see her son on April 8. "I was so happy, I even forgot to ask about a lot of things. But the things he was wearing were his own, he's lost weight, but he's smiling as always—he's a young, strong guy, only 18. He always reassures me, saying, 'Mom, don't worry, everything will be fine.' He's no longer on a hunger strike, but he held out as long as he could, and it was very difficult. He had to [injure himself] to be taken out to answer the bell. I asked about solitary confinement, and he said, 'I don't know if they'll put him in solitary confinement or not.' Before that, he spent 60 days straight in solitary confinement in December and January, in summer overalls without heating," Ekaterina Orlova told the Caucasian Knot.

According to his mother, Ramazan told her that when he was taken out of solitary confinement, several of his things were missing. "Before this, a special forces officer hit him in front of the cameras, and my son lost consciousness. I filed a complaint about the provocative actions against my son with the Federal Penitentiary Service and the prosecutor's office on March 25th. I recorded all complaints through Gosuslugi and wrote to the Federal Penitentiary Service," Orlova explained. By confiscating personal hygiene items, denying prisoners access to the bathhouse, and obstructing religious rites, pretrial detention facility staff are committing a gross violation of prisoners' rights, lawyer Timofey Shirokov pointed out. "There are internal regulations, and they spell out everything: what items are allowed and what isn't. However, in a pretrial detention center, there can't be the same restrictions on packages and parcels that exist in prison camps. There's no requirement to wear a specific uniform in a pretrial detention center, so there's no penalty for this, although generally, violations of the regulations can result in solitary confinement," he told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Furthermore, pretrial detention center administration is obligated to ensure that those in the pretrial detention center are provided with necessary items, including hygiene products. "If they don't have their own clothing, they are obligated to provide it, and compliance with sanitary and hygienic requirements is mandatory," Shirokov emphasized.

Items for religious rites, he added, also cannot be confiscated. "Unless they pose a threat of being used as a weapon: for example, I know that Orthodox Christians can have their metal cross chains confiscated. But books, prayer mats, and rosary beads are permitted for use," the lawyer explained.