"Work and be silent": Artist Lyudmila Razumova spoke about the slave-like working conditions in the prison colony where she is serving time.
A new letter from the political prisoner was published by her support group. In it, Lyudmila reported that the administration of Correctional Colony No. 5 in Vyshny Volochok, circumventing the law, had set its own production quota. And this quota is so high that it's impossible to meet it in a single shift.
"To meet their sky-high quotas, you have to work all day, like two shifts, plus weekends. But even then, you can't meet the quotas," writes Lyudmila. "<…> No one would work for a pittance, 200-500 rubles, even in prison. And to achieve this, the prison administration has devised a simple scheme. Those who don't work as they're supposed to are blacklisted. They're bombarded with bogus reports, punished for things that never happened. This means no early release and special monitoring. If you dare challenge your rights, you're sent to solitary confinement."
Razumova reported that the clothes women sew in the prison are saturated with chemicals, but are not officially recognized as hazardous work for which they should receive extra pay.
"Many women are seriously ill," says Lyudmila. "But they're forced to work anyway, even if they receive help from home with parcels and money. They work as slaves to secure early release (they all have children) and to avoid being regularly locked up in the hellish punishment cell. <…> There's no escape! Work and keep quiet. It seems impossible these days. I heard that a slave owner is prosecuted if they find people in his house working against their will and without pay, and here we have a whole colony of slaves and slave owners."
Lyudmila Razumova has been incarcerated since March 29, 2022. She was sentenced to seven years in prison for "vandalism" due to anti-war graffiti and for spreading "fake news" about the Russian army through social media posts. Her husband was also convicted on similar charges. Alexander Martynov — he was sentenced to 6,5 years in prison.
