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The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 caused a “generalization” of torture as a “means of repression” in Russia, where this practice had already been “rooted” for decades, says a report by a UN expert presented this Tuesday.
“Evidently,” repression and torture “have existed for 30 years, it is not a new phenomenon in Russia,” Mariana Katzarova, United Nations special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in that country, commented at a press conference.
“But now, after the full-scale invasion (of Ukraine), it has become a concerted strategy, a tool to stifle civic space, to silence all anti-war or dissidents, anyone who disagrees with the policies and the Russian authorities,” he added.
This new report, presented to the United Nations General Assembly, concludes that torture has become a tool for repression “inside (the country) and aggression outside.”
“Russian authorities are rarely held accountable. This impunity has contributed to their ‘normalization’ in society and the ‘legitimization’ of a culture of violence,” the document maintains.
The rapporteur, whose requests to visit Russia have gone unanswered, describes in detail a “wide range of brutal methods” of torture used by the Russian police, in particular to “extract” confessions or to “punish” and “humiliate” in prisons .
The document refers in particular to the method of “psychological torture” known as “Shizo”, to the “individual disciplinary cells” in which certain opponents are isolated, as was the case of Alexei Navalny, who died in prison in February 2024, or exile to psychiatric wards.
“Since the start of partial (military) mobilization in September 2022, Russian army commanders have resorted to torture and ill-treatment against conscientious objectors, enlisted combatants and regular military personnel who refuse to obey orders. to fight against Ukraine,” the text adds.
Specifically, it refers to the existence of “at least 15 unofficial detention places near the front line, where hundreds of people are held and subjected to torture to punish them.”
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