On 14th day of hunger strike held by human rights defender Nagavkin, his relatives gain attention of Volgograd Regional PO

At least three complaints lodged by Igor Nagavkin, a human rights defender, who has been on a hunger strike at the SIZO (pre-trial prison), where he is kept, for 14 days, were received by the Prosecutor's Office (PO) of the Volgograd Region. The head of the PO has assured that his authorized official would be sent to Nagavkin.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Igor Nagavkin has been on an endless hunger strike since March 7 in protest against violations of the rights of those detainees kept at the Leninsk SIZO. The SIZO bosses and the PO gave no reaction to his hunger strike, Igor's sister has stated.

Natalia Shishlina, Igor's sister, has reported that she managed to get an appointment with Denis Kostenko, the Prosecutor of the Volgograd Region. She gave him her statement about her brother's hunger strike and his complaints about the custody conditions at the SIZO.

"My brother has taken extreme measures, fully aware of the consequences for his health, due to the illegal actions of the SIZO staff," Ms Shishlina asserts in her statement.

The prosecutor promised to send "his trusted official" to the SIZO, Natalia said, adding that Prosecutor Kostenko had assured her that his official "could be relied upon."

"I see that he is melting before my eyes. It hurts me to look at this. I am worried. I told the prosecutor about this and asked him to urgently help," Natalia Shishlina has explained.

"If Nagavkin is diagnosed with serious and dangerous diseases, the SIZO staff is obliged to transfer him to a medical correctional facility or to a civilian hospital," Sergey Ivaschenko, a lawyer, has noted.