Paglipat sa basketball star na si Griner sa Russian penal colony, ikinagalit ng US

(FILES) In this file photo taken on August 04, 2022, US Women’s National Basketball Association basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, waits for the verdict inside a defendants’ cage during a hearing in Khimki outside Moscow. (Photo by EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA / POOL / AFP)

Sinabi ng mga abogado ng US basketball star na si Brittney Griner, na inilipat ito ng Russia sa isang penal colony matapos matalo ang kaniyang apela laban sa isang drug conviction.

Ayon sa legal team ni Griner, na hinatulang makulong ng siyam na taon dahil sa pag-iingat ng ‘small quantity” ng cannabis oil, inialis siya mula sa isang detention centre noong November 4.

Sinabi ng mga abogadong sina Maria Blagovolina at Alexander Boykov, “She is now on her way to a penal colony. We do not have any information on her exact current location or her final destination.”

Ayon sa mga abogado, karaniwang ipinababatid ng Russia ang paglilipat ng isang bilanggo sa ibang address sa pamamagitan ng koreo, na tumatagal ng hanggang dalawang linggo.

Ang kaso ni Griner ay nagpagalit sa Estados Unidos, kung saan ang Kalihim ng Estado na si Antony Blinken ay nagnanais na magkaroon ng kasunduan sa Russia upang palayain si Griner sa kabila ng tumataas na tensyon kaugnay ng opensiba ng Moscow sa Ukraine.

Giit naman ni White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, “The United States had put forward a ‘substantial offer’ to Russia to resolve her case. Every minute that Brittney Griner must endure wrongful detention in Russia is a minute too long. As the administration continues to work tirelessly to secure her release, the president has directed the administration to prevail on her Russian captors to improve her treatment and the conditions she may be forced to endure in a penal colony.”

Si Griner, ang two-time Olympic basketball gold medallist at Women’s NBA champion, ay nagtungo sa Russia upang maglaro para sa professional Yekaterinburg team sa panahon ng kaniyang off-season mula sa Phoenix Mercury Women National Basketball Association.

Aniya, ang cannabis sa vape cartridges ay gamot sa pananakit na dulot ng kaniyang sporting injuries, subali’t hindi pinapayagan ng Russia ang paggamit ng medical marijuana.

Sinabi ng Prisoners’ rights activist na si Vladimir Osechkin, “Conditions in penal colonies are much harsher than in detention centres. It is a more totalitarian system with Gulag uniforms and 100 people per room in barracks.”

Nagbabala si Osechkin, na founder ng Gulagu.net rights group, na ang mga opisyal ng bilangguan ay karaniwang nag-oorganisa ng away sa pagitan ng mga bilanggo.

Aniya, “If the Kremlin decides not to torture the basketball player and creates VIP conditions for her, she will be allowed to eat separately, play sports and keep fit. But if a decision is made and the federal prison service receives an order to put pressure on her then of course her life and health will be in danger.”

Sinasabi ng mga aktibista na madalas ang pang-aabuso at pagpapahirap sa malawak na network ng mga kulungan ng Russia na pinamamahalaan ng Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN), isang kahalili sa kilalang sistema ng Gulag noong Stalin era.

Tinawagan ng pansin ng anti-torture project na Gulagu.net, ang anila’y sistematikong pang-aabuso at sekswal na karahasan sa mga bilanggo.

© Agence France-Presse

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