Greenpeace activists permitted to speak English with their families - Penitentiary Service
MURMANSK. Oct 9 (Interfax) - Personnel of the Murmansk detention center where Greenpeace activists had been placed for two months after their protest action near the Prirazlomnaya oilrig disagreed with the opinion of the environmentalist organization, which branded the center's custody conditions "inhumane".
"We do not discriminate between Russian and foreign inmates. Conditions are the same for everyone and consistent with the law," acting assistant to the head of the regional department of the Federal Penitentiary Service for the observation of human rights Boris Chernov said.
The Greenpeace activists are kept in heated cells without video cameras in the toilet area, Chernov said.
Greenpeace spokesmen said earlier that the arrested foreigners were unable to use some of their rights because they did not speak Russian. For instance, a written statement in Russian is required for opening an internal personal account and borrowing books from the library. The Federal Penitentiary Service worker said the detention center's personnel were ready to make concessions for the foreign inmates.
"True, a library request has to be filed in Russian but the foreign activists do not have to do that. The librarian will lend books at their spoken request," Chernov said.
The problem of telephone conversations, which are supposed to be held in a language the detention center staff can understand, has also been resolved, he said. An English-speaking worker will be present during the calls of the environmentalists to their families.
The service representative said that the detention center was not compelled to offer a religious diet. A specialized diet is made available for medical reasons only.
"There are more calories in the food cooked for sick inmates, they are given extra milk and butter in line with the dietary norms," the first detention center's deputy head for logistics Yevgeny Shuntov said.
The Arctic Sunrise was detained on September 19 over a protest rally against the oil drilling activities of the Prirazlomnaya platform in the Pechora Sea. The vessel was brought to Murmansk and impounded.
All 30 crew members have been charged with "piracy committed by an organized group." The defendants pled not guilty and refused to testify.
