23:46, 28 November 2024

SIZO administration in Chechnya refuses to release writer Zakhar Zaripov, who is suffering from cancer

Zakhar Zaripov. Photo: https://memopzk.org/figurant/zaripov-zahar-vladimirovich/ included into the register of foreign agents

Zakhar Zaripov, a writer, convicted for an appeal to the head of Chechnya, remains at the Khabarovsk SIZO (pre-trial prison), despite the cancellation of his punishment associated with freedom deprivation. The SIZO bosses refuse to release him until they receive the text of the verdict.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the military appellate court replaced Zaripov's five-year prison term with a fine, after he was convicted of an appeal to Ramzan Kadyrov. Instead, the court sentenced him to pay 650,000 roubles, but then reduced the fine to 350,000 roubles, taking into account the time spent at the SIZO. After his cancer surgery, his eyesight has deteriorated.

The linguistic expertise saw in the above Zaripov's appeal signs of "incitement to an armed seizure of power with the aim of violating the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation." In August, Zaripov's advocate reported that his client had been diagnosed with cancer. In September, the convict's relatives said that the disease was progressing, but the SIZO failed to provide him with efficient treatment. The defence's requests to transfer Zaripov to house arrest remained unanswered.

Zaripov, who was supposed to be released from custody after his sentence was mitigated, is still at the Khabarovsk SIZO, the human rights project "OVD-Info"* has informed.

The SIZO administration cannot release Zaripov without a verdict, which must come from Moscow, but it is unknown how long this will take, human rights defenders reported, citing Zaripov's support group.

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 27, 2024 at 07:19 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Source: Caucasian Knot