Yana Nepovinnova's Commentary
Hi, my name is Yana Nepovinnova, I’m a lawyer. Today I went to the detention center No. 5 to see Sasha Skochilenko. With her consent, I’ll tell you about her current situation, about the news we have at the moment.
Sasha was transferred to a cell for 6 people; prior to that, she was in a cell for 18 people. In my opinion, this happened because of the massive public outcry and media attention, and also thanks to your letters to the Commissioner for Human Rights in St Petersburg. So thank you so much! Now Sasha is in a cell that is much warmer and the plumbing is not leaking here. Unfortunately, that’s all the good news we have today.
Her cellmates are surprised by the significant interest in Sasha, because almost every day the representatives of the detention center visit her and ask whether everything is fine, whether she is okay with her conditions. Today, for example, she had meetings all day. In the morning, she had a meeting with the head of the detention center, the persecutor, and the medical assistant where they discussed her nutrition. She was promised that the situation will be resolved somehow, but at the moment, Sasha does not receive hot food, she lives on the parcels that were passed to her recently. The problem is that not everything can be passed in a parcel, but we’re working on this: today or tomorrow, Sasha will write a letter to the head of the infirmary asking that he prepare an official document permitting her, due to her medical condition, first, to receive an unlimited number of parcels [the current limit for parcels is at 30 kg (66lbs) per month]; and second, to receive protein supplements [they are not allowed at the moment, and they were not accepted]. We hope to make it happen.
Recently, after my comment on the state of Sasha and her conditions in jail, the Federal Penitentiary Service (FPS) made a statement which read that Sasha is able to receive an unlimited number of parcels and that is possible to buy gluten-free food in the “FPS-store”. This is quite funny, actually: first, the “FPS-store” has almost no gluten-free options. Tea, fruit (not a lot of it), and chocolate—that is pretty much it, and you can’t really live on this. Also, the parcels do have a [weight] limit, and it is very hard to sign up for a slot and pass a parcel. You can open the official “FPS-window” website to see that there are no free slots for the next two weeks. Sasha’s close friends who were able to pass her the parcels—thanks a lot for that—were just lucky to catch a slot that suddenly became available. Now we hope that the detention center will allow an unlimited number of parcels and certain foods as an exception, taking into consideration Sasha’s diet.
Also, apart from the meeting with the prosecutor, head of the detention center, and the doctor, Sasha had a meeting with representatives of the PMC—Public Monitoring Commission for human rights in detention and penitentiary facilities. We informed them about Sasha’s conditions, and we hope that their conclusion will help enforce Sasha’s rights.
While Sasha was in the temporary detention facility she was taken for some medical exams: she saw a gynecologist, a GP, and a psychotherapist. The examinations were conducted but she was not informed about he results, only the gynecologist said that the abdominal ultrasound saw “some pathologies”. Today Sasha was told by the GP that “some pathologies” turned out to be cysts in her right ovary. If she doesn’t get proper medical attention, there is a high risk of developing cancer, especially considering that along with malnutrition, her condition—celiac disease—can also cause cancer.
Also, because of stress, Sasha is suffering from other health problems: for instance, she has severe toothaches because of her wisdom teeth that are growing under her second molars. The head of the detention center assured us that he will see to it and that Sasha will get medical assistance, but in our opinion, the dentist at the detention center will not be able to provide proper relief. Earlier, Sasha underwent an examination and was planning to have a surgery in summer to have her wisdom teeth removed; in her case, it is impossible to do it in a dental chair because it has to be a surgical operation.
Also, Sasha is very concerned because of her bipolar disorder: she is managing it at the moment, but she is really afraid that malnutrition and high levels of stress might exacerbate her condition.
Sasha sends her warm hello to everyone who is supporting her. I am passing her the news and telling her that you are writing to her, but unfortunately, so far no letters from the “FPS-letter” service have made it to her. Today I informed the head of the detention facility about this and was told that the letters are passing through the censors and it takes time. So Sasha really waits for your letters, and if you want to write to her, you can do it through the “FPS-letter” service.
Thank you so much for your support! I’ll repeat that it is the media attention, as Sasha and I think, that has helped us improve her conditions in this less than pleasant place. Thanks a lot!
04/28/2022