Ukrainians who have already served their sentences are still being held in Russian prisons

Their term has ended. But they have not been released.

Russia systematically refuses to let go of Ukrainian political prisoners imprisoned before the full-scale invasion. Even after a formal "completion of sentence," people can be re-arrested, transferred to deportation centres, or kept under the control of Russian authorities on other pretexts.

Liudmyla Shumkova, a lawyer at the Union, points out: if a Ukrainian whose sentence has ended is not allowed to go home but is in effect kept inside the Russian detention system, this is not a "migration procedure" and not a technical matter. It is the continuation of unlawful deprivation of liberty and political persecution.

Liudmyla gave her commentary for an article by journalist Yuliia Abibok, prepared for the Media Initiative for Human Rights.

The issue of Ukrainians imprisoned before 2022 must not fall off the radar. Even when their sentence has expired, a person may still remain in Russian captivity.

The full article by Yuliia Abibok for the Media Initiative for Human Rights is available at the link.