Gulag 2.0: FSB wants its own pretrial detention centres
People accused of treason, espionage, extremism, and terrorism could soon end up in detention centres controlled by Russia's secret service, the FSB. Human rights activists fear this will lead to restricted access for lawyers and weakened judicial oversight. Barents Observer called to the initiator of the bill, leader of the defence committee, Andrei Kartapolov.
Deputies submitted a bill to the State Duma that will allow the FSB to have its own detention centres. They plan to hold prisoners on charges of treason, espionage, terrorism, and extremism.
It is likely that political prisoners will be held in these detention centres. In addition, the State Duma proposes to grant the FSB powers for the transportation and escorting of prisoners.
Similar to the powers of the secret police in Stalin times.
Barents Observer called one of the initiators of the bill, State Duma deputy and Russian military leader Andrei Kartapolov. We asked him whether transferring detention centres to the FSB's jurisdiction would lead to a loss of public and judicial oversight in the future.
“Unlike Europe, we have an absolutely transparent judicial system and penal system. Therefore, everything will be transparent and controlled. Primarily by the legislative power. And by the courts. So don't worry,” said Deputy Kartapolov.
During Soviet times, the NKVD, and later the KGB, operated detention centres where those accused of political and state crimes were held. These institutions, such as the infamous Lubyanka prison in Moscow, were used for interrogations, often accompanied by human rights violations, including torture and fabrication of cases.
“And compare the history of Western countries - what cases they had,” continued Kartapolov, commenting on the NKVD and KGB system. “Do you know how many concentration camps there were in Nazi Germany? And how many illegal and underground prisons there were in the United States? We have never had anything like that in modern Russia. And we won't. Everything will be controlled and transparent with us.”
While talking with Kartapolov in phone, a woman's load voice was heard in the background: “Colleagues, do not vote!”. When talking with the Barents Observer, the deputy was at a meeting in the State Duma.
State Duma deputy Vasily Piskarev stated in his Telegram channel that the bill is aimed at improving security in Russia. There were also accusations against Ukraine:
“The experience of recent years has shown that the decisions previously made at the suggestion of Western 'partners' to comply with 'European values' did not contribute to increasing the level of security in our country and effectively preventing dangerous crimes… After the coup in Ukraine, and especially after the start of the Special Military Operation, the intelligence and subversive activities of foreign intelligence services and the terrorist and extremist communities controlled by them against Russia have multiplied.”
FSB - a structure not accountable to anyone
Ivan Astashin is a human rights activist, former political prisoner, and author of the book "Journey through Places of Confinement."
In the book, Astashin describes in detail the Russian prison system, its violence, and repressive nature.
He spent almost ten years in a high-security colony for a case involving an attack on an FSB department. In detention, Astashin personally encountered torture and humiliation. Now he openly speaks and writes about it. After emigrating, Russian authorities have again put him on the wanted list.
“The transfer of some detention centres to the FSB's jurisdiction will lead to them effectively becoming unaccountable to supervisory bodies,” says Ivan Astashin to Barents Observer.
According to him, access for lawyers to such institutions will become significantly more difficult, and human rights and judicial oversight will be practically impossible.
“The FSB is a special service that is accountable to no one because it is the main one in Russia,” he notes, emphasising that unlike the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN), where it is still possible to seek the observance of prisoners' rights through the courts or the prosecutor's office, this will not work in FSB detention centres.
Ivan also clarifies that even now in Russia there are detention centres that are formally subordinate to the FSIN but are actually under the control of the FSB. These include Lefortovo in Moscow, the detention centre on Shpalernaya Street next to FSB headquarters Bolshoi Dom (The Big House) in St. Petersburg, SIZO-5 in Krasnodar, and several others.
“For example, in Lefortovo, it is common practice that, contrary to legal requirements, lawyers are required to obtain permission from the investigator to meet with their client. And the investigator, of course, is also from the FSB,” he explains.
He recalls that human rights activist Andrey Babushkin, during his lifetime, mentioned that in Lefortovo, most of the detention centre staff are actually FSB employees, although they formally wear FSIN uniforms.
"And if this is all officially under FSB control, then lawyers simply won't be allowed to see their clients if it is not beneficial for the FSB, and there will be nothing you can do about it," warns Astashin.
He believes that in such conditions, illegal searches of lawyers, inspections, and checks of their confidential documents will become more frequent.
According to the human rights activist, such incidents are already happening now. For example, several years ago at the detention centre in St. Petersburg, FSB officers illegally searched lawyer Yana Nepovinnova and seized documents containing information from her client. Such cases are rare for now, but if the bill is passed, they could become the norm.
