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20 Jun 2026
62-Year-Old Human Rights Defender Denied Medical Care in Arctic Penal Colony
Бахром Хамроев с супругой Зухрой, фото: Радио Азаттык
On 18 May, Zukhra, the wife of human rights defender Bakhrom Khamroev, visited him at the “Polar Owl” penal colony. Penal Colony No. 18, located in the settlement of Kharp, lies beyond the Arctic Circle. It is a special-regime prison colony, one of the harshest in Russia, where some prisoners are serving life sentences.
The couple had not seen each other for two years. According to Zukhra, her husband had visibly lost weight and looked pale. During the visit, Bakhrom spoke about his deteriorating health and the harsh conditions of his detention.
The authorities have repeatedly placed the human rights defender in a punishment cell, where he spent months at a time. They have also held him in solitary confinement and under strict conditions of detention. On several occasions, prison staff kept him for hours in a “glass” — a cage-like booth so small that it is impossible even to sit down — without food, water or medication.
Khamroev described the conditions in the punishment cell premises as hellish. Temperatures in the cells can become extremely low, yet he is not provided with warm clothing, including for outdoor exercise periods. He believes the prison administration is using these conditions to pressure him into cooperation.
As a result of these conditions, which he describes as torture-like, the 62-year-old political prisoner’s chronic pain has worsened, and he temporarily lost mobility in his left leg.
The human rights defender described the colony’s medical staff as “direct participants in this torture-based punitive machine”. He was denied access to essential medication, including medicine sent by his relatives. Because of the lack of medication and inadequate nutrition, he began suffering from severe vomiting.
Khamroev was also deprived of devices used to monitor his diabetes and hypertension, as well as his glasses and his Quran.
“If they do not kill me, we will certainly meet in freedom, talk, discuss the details — there is much I want to say to each person, and many people to whom I want to express my gratitude,” Khamroev said in a message to those who write letters to him.
