Russia’s Pr*son System: Structure, Political Prisoners, and Paths to Help

Russia’s Pr*son system is not only a place of confinement — it is one of the regime’s central instruments of control, intimidation, and political repression. In this event, former Russian political prisoner Mikhail Savostin will offer a firsthand account of life inside Russian prisons and penal colonies, explaining the system’s internal hierarchy, unwritten rules, punishment mechanisms, Pr*son transport, medical neglect, and the special pressures placed on political prisoners.

Drawing on his own experience as an opposition activist, former prisoner, entrepreneur, and co-founder of the Solidarity trade union, Misha will show how the Pr*son system functions as a closed world with its own language, power structures, and methods of survival. The discussion will also examine the growing number of political prisoners in modern Russia, especially after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and why many prisoners and their families are left to face legal, medical, and financial hardship largely on their own.

The evening will conclude with a practical conversation on what can be done from abroad — including how individuals can help political prisoners and their families through the assistance and network of the Free Peoples of Russia House. The event will be presented by Mikhail Savostin, with interpretation by Michael Wasiura.

At each of our events you can expect a warm atmosphere, an ability to network as well as complimentary refreshments.
RSVP is recommended, and donations welcomed.

Each talk is broadcasted live from our auditorium when it starts at 6:00pm EST on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61567824218964

Mikhail Savostin is a Russian civic and political activist, a former political prisoner recognized by the Human Rights Center Memorial.

For more than ten years, he was engaged in civic and political work in Russia’s Stavropol region. He was one of the organizers of the public movement Veche KMV, the Solidarity trade union, and protests against the Platon toll system. He is a member of the Council of the Assembly of the Peoples of the Caucasus. He was a candidate for the Coordination Council of the Russian opposition, ran for mayor of Zheleznovodsk, and stood as a candidate for the Duma of the Stavropol region.

He organized protest actions and public campaigns and carried out around five protest hunger strikes. He took part in rallies and protests in many cities across Russia. He was also involved in volunteer work during the response to the Krymsk flood and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Because of his civic and political activity, he was repeatedly detained, persecuted, and pressured by the Russian authorities. In 2018, he was arrested and was later recognized as a political prisoner.

In 2021, he left Russia. Since 2023, he has lived in the United States, where he continues his human rights and civic work and assists political émigrés and asylum seekers.