Political prisoner, human rights defender, and journalist Iryna Danylovych has appealed to European Parliament Vice-President Pina Picierno, urging her to draw the attention of the European community to widespread abuse in the Russian women’s penal colony in Zelenokumsk. She conveyed her message through close relatives. Picierno was chosen as the addressee because she is considered Iryna’s “moral guardian” and has repeatedly spoken out in her support. Notably, Pina Picierno serves as Iryna Danylovych’s mentor under the advocacy program supporting Crimean political prisoners.

According to Iryna Danylovych, the administration of the penal colony employs methods reminiscent of the Gestapo, creating unbearable conditions for prisoners. She reported that hundreds of women are subjected to invisible torture: bright electric lights are kept on around the clock, day and night, to such a blinding degree that even eye masks provide no relief. This deprives inmates of sleep and causes chronic headaches and eye pain.

In addition, starting at 6 a.m., loudspeakers operate inside the barracks for several hours at extreme volume. This noise causes severe suffering and, in the case of Iryna Danylovych — who suffers from inflamed auditory organs — results in acute physical pain. She compared these methods to practices she had read about in historical studies of crimes committed by the Nazi Gestapo.

Earlier, Iryna Danylovych had already reported the dire sanitary and living conditions in the colony where she is being unlawfully held by the aggressor state, as well as other forms of abuse against women by the colony administration. These include being forced to stand outside on the parade ground for hours in freezing cold or heavy rain.

We call on the international community to increase pressure on Russia to secure the release of all civilian hostages illegally detained by the aggressor state. Only the full de-occupation of all Ukrainian territories seized by the occupiers can put an end to the Russian Federation’s criminal actions.