Viktor Filinkov, an antifascist political prisoner serving 7-year sentence has been moved to a basement cell, apparently as a punishment for sitting on his bed during day time.

Filinkov was one of the defentants in “The Network” case. According to the Russian state authorities, “the Network” was  an “anarchist terrorist community” set up in May 2015 with the aim to overthrow the Russian regime by “establishing combat groups and recruiting individuals who shared their anarchist ideology.”

Filinkov, who takes keen interest in robotics and computer programming, has been accused of volunteering to be the group’s “radioman.” Additionally, he allegedely “supplied members with communications devices,” taught them encryption, “recruited other individuals, discussed and planned crimes during meetings, attended classes on tactics, reconnaissance, sabotage, and combat, and the use of weapons and explosive devices, and acquired the knowledge necessary in extreme circumstances and combat conditions.”  Filinkov denies all charges and states that he does not understand them.

Filinkov was arrested on the above bogus charges in January 2018 and subsequently subjected to torture in order to extract a confession. In June 2020, he was sentenced to 7 years in the general regime prison colony. He is now serving his sentence in SIZO-1 prison facilicity in the city of Kirov in western Russia.

During a recent meeting with his lawyer,  Yevgenia Kulakova, Filinkov said that he had been transferred to the basement cell due to a conflict with the guards. According to Yevgenia, the conflict situation arose due to the fact that the convicts sat in the cell during the day on prison beds, which is prohibited according to the “Internal Regulations of Correctional Institutions” (TAP).

Filinkov shared a cell equipped with two sitting spaces with six other people, and that was the reason for the breach of the Internal Regulations. Yevgenia Kulakova said: “As Viktor told me, there are only two benches for seven people in the Kirov SIZO-1 cell, which can accommodate only two people. During meals, people are forced to take turns. The Kirov SIZO-1 is not equipped with everything necessary to comply with the TAP, but this is required from the prisoners.”

After repeated refusal to obey the TAP demands,  about ten officers entered the cell, one carrying a stun gun. Two prisoners were then removed from the cell and informed that they are being taken for a “”professional conversation” in the prison’s special block. The remaining five, including Viktor Filinkov, were taken to a cell in the basement, accompanied by an employee who was rattling with the stun gun.

The place where the prisoners were brought is a seven-seater cell. It has a window at ground level, a wooden floor, a vaulted ceiling, at the highest point you can reach the ceiling with your hand. This cell is dirty, humid  and infested by flies and cockroaches. As an additional punishment, Filinkov and his cell-mates were barred from calling home. They were also informed that if they protest their prison conditions again, they will be moved to even more squalid cell.

We encourage support and solidarity for the antifascists and anarchists who have been tortured and imprisoned in Russia. Here is how you can help:

• Donate money to the Anarchist Black Cross in Moscow via PayPal (abc-msk@riseup.net). Make sure to specify your donation is earmarked for “Rupression.”
• Spread the word about the Network Case aka the Penza-Petersburg “terrorism” case. You can find more information about the case and in-depth articles translated into English on this website (see below), rupression.com
• Organize solidarity events where you live to raise money and awareness for the plight of the tortured Penza and Petersburg antifascists. Go to the website It’s Going Down to find printable posters and flyers you can download. You can also read more about the case there.
• If you have the time and means to design, produce, and sell solidarity merchandise, please write to rupression@protonmail.com.
• Write letters and postcards to the prisoners. Letters and postcards must be written in Russian or translated into Russian. You can find the addresses of the prisoners #support” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow”>here.
• Share news stories across social networks beyond Russia.
• Design a solidarity postcard that can be printed and used by others to send messages of support to the prisoners. Send your ideas to rupression@protonmail.com.
• Write letters of support to the prisoners’ loved ones via rupression@protonmail.com.
• Translate the articles and information at rupression.com and this website into languages other than Russian and English, and publish your translations on social media and your own websites and blogs.

Source: Avtonom.