INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian prisons are progressively restricting inmates access to foreign literature and books in foreign languages, the independent news
outlet Mozhem Obyasnit reported Friday.Inmates across Russia have actually reported restrictions on works by foreign authors, language
research study materials and even traditional novels as prison censors tighten controls over what detainees are allowed to read.Sergei
Dudchenko, a political prisoner held in Rostov-on-Dons Detention Center No
1 for over 6 months, said authorities permitted him to keep just one of four books sent out by supporters.A biography of Italian
industrialist Enzo Ferrari was allegedly prohibited since Ferrari is a foreign resident
Joe Hills Heart-Shaped Box was seized because its skull-decorated cover was deemed inappropriate, while a book by Russian author Sergei
Dovlatov was withheld without explanation.Dudchenko was allowed to keep Jack Kerouacs On the Road.In the same facility, other prisoners were
rejected books from the Fifty Shades of Grey series as well as materials in French, English and Ukrainian.Detainees reported comparable
restrictions at SIZO-6 in Gorelovo near St
Ivan Zabavsky was disallowed from receiving English language research study guides consisting of English Grammar in Use.Music books were
also banned at SIZO-5 in St
Petersburg, according to previous political detainee Sasha Skolichenko, who said officials claimed that musical notes might be utilized to
hide coded messages.In the Samara region, political detainee Yulia Koveshnikova reported that her jail prohibited her from checking out
books, investigator stories or any foreign literature.It seems Im only allowedto read patriotic product, so Ill need a great deal of
crossword puzzles and pens to captivate myself, she wrote.Books and publications typically disappear throughout assessment, prisoners said,
with appeals rarely leading to access.Eva Levenberg, a legal representative for leading independent rights projectOVD-Info legal
representative, stated that while extremist materials are prohibited under Russian law, prison administrations work out broad discretionary
powers over which books they permit.Some jails turn down materials based upon their viewed results on prisoners psycho-emotional state, she
informed Mozhem Obyasnit.Levenberg advised households and advocates of detainees to contact individual centers before sending books, and
kept in mind that approximate rejections can be challenged through formal appeals.Russian jails are notorious for their extreme conditions,
with lots of prisoners withstanding bleak living conditions and frequent abuse at the hands of guards.
