Russian authorities move to establish 24 new penitentiaries in annexed Ukrainian regions

The Russian Federal Penitentiary Service (“FSIN”) has received a government order to set up 24 new penal colonies in the Russian-annexed regions of Ukraine. The order was signed by the Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

Following the order, 12 penal colonies are to open in the Donetsk region, seven in the self-proclaimed Luhansk “republic,” three in the Russian-controlled part of the Kherson region, and two more in Zaporizhzhia, where a “settlement-type colony” is also to be established.

The federal authorities also plan to establish three “prison-hospitals” and three “correction centers” in the occupied parts of Ukraine.

As of November 2022, 626 penal colonies were operating in Russia. (This is an average of seven penitentiaries for every region.)

Also last November, Navalny Team cited Russia Behind Bars and the human rights advocacy organization Gulagu.net, reporting that, in the course of its retreat from Kherson, the Russian military transported Ukrainian inmates to 10 different penal institutions in Russia.