KBR resident complains about ban to pray in jail

The complaint of Aslan Cherkesov, a native of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), about the ban to pray is a sufficient reason to check the prison where he is being held, Valery Borschov, a lawyer and a co-chairman of the Moscow Helsinki Group, believes. Cherkesov's custody conditions are inhuman, said Valery Slepukha, a former head of the Public Oversight Commission (POC) of the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

On April 2, Aslan Cherkesov said, in his video appeal to the KBR's Regional Human Rights Centre, that he had been kept in the dungeon (punishment cell) since February 11. He had complained about his custody conditions, but supervisory bodies gave no reaction.

The absence of natural illumination and cell ventilation of the room, drinking water from the tap – are usual conditions for dungeons (also known as ShiZO – punishment cells), said Valery Borschov, adding that it is difficult for Muslims to avoid eating pork in jail. However, wardens should not prevent prisoner from praying, he has stated.

Valery Slepukha, who headed the POC of the Krasnoyarsk Territory until June 2018, criticized the work of the commission. According to his story, inmates' relatives continue addressing him.

The prison, where Cherkesov is kept, is intended for those sentenced to long terms and for malicious violators of the custody regime in colonies, Mr Slepukha has explained. "The custody conditions there are totally substandard; inmates are provoked to commit violations," he has added.