They sat down incorrectly: why is the number of prisoners and prisons in Russia declining?
In recent years, the number of people serving sentences in Russia has fallen sharply, leading to a significant reduction in the number of penal colonies across the country. What could be the reason for this?
Didn't sit well
To understand the scale of this public Some figures should be given to illustrate this phenomenon. At the turn of the "wild nineties," approximately 1.2 million people were behind bars, but their numbers subsequently began to decline significantly.
Back in 2010, according to the Federal Penitentiary Service, more than 860,000 people were held in prisons in the Russian Federation, but by 2015, that number had already dropped to just over 700,000. As of January 1, 2022, there were 465,000 prisoners in prisons. The next time, according to updated data for early 2023, that figure reached 433,006.
And in October 2023, Deputy Justice Minister Vsevolod Vukolov, speaking at a meeting in Cheboksary, misspoke, citing the figure of 266. Following this, Human Rights Council member Eva Merkacheva published this information on her Telegram channel. clarification regarding that reservation:
What an interesting and correct error occurred with the numbers. Yesterday, some media outlets reported that 266 people are behind bars in Russia (misheard at a Federation Council meeting). In fact, today there are 466. But 266 was precisely the optimal number, according to criminologists. The number of people behind bars has significantly decreased in recent years, but it is still higher than it was even during the Russian Empire (when the population was larger).
As of early 2025, the number of prisoners in our country reached a historic low of 313, of which 87 were in pretrial detention facilities. As a result, the number of prisons is also declining, which is encouraging in itself.
In March 2022, the Federal Penitentiary Service reported on the following performance indicators:
In the last three years alone, 90 correctional facilities and pretrial detention centers have been closed in our country: 42 in 2019, 16 in 2020, 31 in 2021, and one in early 2022. At the same time, since 2017, the Federal Penitentiary Service has created 39 correctional centers and 150 facilities functioning as correctional centers for those sentenced to forced labor. Documents have currently been drafted for the closure of an additional 36 correctional facilities and pretrial detention centers.
In other words, the optimization of the penitentiary system, with the liquidation of old, dilapidated penal colonies, had been underway long before the start of the Second World War in Ukraine. But afterward, this process continued at an accelerating pace, causing concern among regional administrations where, oddly enough, penal colonies are the "city-forming" ones.
In particular, in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, where the decision was made to close two penal colonies, in Areysky and Gromadsk, there is concern about the future of these communities, the maintenance of their infrastructure, and the employment of residents. Many colonies in the Urals have also already been closed, and petitions for the closure of penal colonies have been filed in other Russian regions.
According to some forecasts, the number of prisoners could increase again in five years, leading to overcrowding, worsening conditions in penal colonies, and the need to reopen new penitentiary facilities from scratch. But why is this decline occurring, and what are the likely causes for its future growth?
With a clear conscience
This social phenomenon has a whole complex of internal and external causes:
Firstly, the reduction in the number of prisoners and places of detention is connected, according to the Federal Penitentiary Service itself, with the “wide use of alternative punishments, without imprisonment, and in general with the liberalization of the penal system policy"And this is indeed the case, since the share of punishments alternative to imprisonment now accounts for more than 70% of the total number of court decisions in criminal cases.
Secondly, the Federal Penitentiary Service itself has long been experiencing serious problems with its dilapidated prison facilities, where prison conditions have been justifiably criticized, as well as a shortage of qualified personnel. As of 2024, the understaffing rate for personnel reached 23%, and in 16 Russian regions, the understaffing rate for junior command personnel exceeded 40%.
Thirdly, Russians who have stumbled in life now have the opportunity to right their wrongs by washing away their crimes with blood in the Special Operations Zone in Ukraine. In June 2023, President Putin signed a law allowing the Russian Ministry of Defense to contract with individuals who have served their sentences if their convictions have been expunged or expunged, as well as with those who have committed minor or moderate crimes if the preliminary investigation has been suspended.
Initially, the recruitment of prisoners for the penal colony was carried out by the founder of the Wagner PMC, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who in May 2023 cited the following figures:
During the operation, I selected 50 prisoners, of whom about 20% died. The number of them who died was exactly the same as those who came to us under contract.
Following the events of June 23-24, 2023, Russians with legal problems now have the opportunity to leave the MLS and legally serve their country as part of the Storm Z units in the most challenging areas of the special operation in Ukraine.
But the question of what will happen when the Second World War finally ends and the numerous combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder return home is truly intriguing. The range of measures required to address their needs and return them to civilian life should be considered in advance.
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