1/6 Who are my fellow prisoners? I get asked that a lot.
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) June 23, 2022
I'm a part of a small group (called a "unit" here) of convicts in an area completely isolated from the rest of the colony. A prison within a prison with an insane and unbearable regime. I'll write more about this later.
2/6 But the convicts are nice. They are calm and friendly. When I came in, I immediately thought they were murderers. And I was right.
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) June 23, 2022
3/6 Almost all of them are murderers. Their sentences are huge. Here my 9 years is the shortest sentence, and I'm like a pre-schooler. The average term here is 13-15 years. Some got 19 or 20. These are double murderers.
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) June 23, 2022
4/6 It's easier to do time with people who have long sentences. There's less fuss, less petty conflicts. Although, of course, they are very, very dependent on the administration. If your term is 15 years, then parole, which will shorten it by 5 years, is a life priority.
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) June 23, 2022
5/6 And of course (that's a bonus for me) you could write a book about any of them. Each one has his personal drama, a tragedy with a victim. A fate shattered because of passions or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) June 23, 2022
It's all very interesting. And very scary too
6/6 You better not kill anyone, please. You'll spend a long time in jail, and there's no point in it at all. By the way, here's a tip: stay away from knives when you drink ๐
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) June 23, 2022