Russia?s ?Dangerous? Decision on Brittney Griner Termed ?Surprising? by Ex-convict

Almost 10 years ago, the Russian musician, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova from Pussy Riot spread the word about the Mordovian prison. She went on a hunger strike and elaborated in her letter about the horrifying atmosphere of the prison. She wrote that the prisoners were “eternally sleep-deprived, always on the verge of breaking down“, among many other distressing counts. WNBA Brittney Griner is currently serving her sentence 4 miles from Tokokonnikova’s camp: the dreaded IK-2.

Vitaly Doyne spent 6 years in the Mordovia penal colony. He was “surprised” that a famous athlete such as Brittney Griner ended up in such a colony. Currently a taxi driver, the 48-year-old man recalled that most of the detainees in IK-2 were “particularly dangerous”.

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The spokesperson for the US State Department stated that they are in frequent contact with Griner’s legal team. “The Russian Federation has still failed to provide any official notification for such a move of a US citizen“.

The WNBA player Brittney Griner was detained at the Moscow airport. Following that, she was sentenced to 9 years in prison for drug possession and alleged trafficking. Griner pleaded not guilty as she said those drugs helped relieve injury pain. Others believe that she was held hostage for political reasons in exchange for Russian arms trafficker, Viktor Bout.

The IK-2 camp has come under the radar for its inhumane conditions. Some detainees revealed their day-to-day to be close to “slavery”.

Brittney Griner doing time in a questionable environment

Olga Romanova, head of the Russia Behind Bars organization has reassured that the prison is “normal”. She also asserted that the negotiations are imperative, lest Brittney Griner could be in “danger”. According to Romanova, the basketball player’s ethnicity, nationality, and sexual orientation are highly accounted for both inside the prison and outside.

While Romanova thinks Griner not knowing the language will come as a blessing in disguise, a professor at Oxford, Judith Pallot has another perspective. She revealed Brittney Griner could face many issues because the medium of instruction would be in Russian.

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Pallot said that the space was “very sterile and sad…It is a system underpinned by violence.”

The WNBA star would hope that her legal team keeps pressing for her innocence and shortens her term. Brittney Griner has received much support from the NBA world. The world waits with bated breath as Russia makes its next move.