Former Russian Prisoner Recounts Torture and Abuse Over Anti-War Sticker

Aleksandra 'Sasha' Skochilenko, an artist and musician, has detailed her harrowing two-year experience in Russian prisons, alleging rape threats, starvation, freezing temperatures, and psychological torture. Her ordeal began in April 2022, shortly after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when she replaced five supermarket price tags with anti-war messages.

Skochilenko's protest involved printing five price tags with messages that criticized the war and the Russian state's propaganda. One message stated, "Putin has been lying to us from television screens for 20 years: the result of these lies is our readiness to justify the war and the senseless deaths." She placed these in a St. Petersburg supermarket.

An elderly shopper reported Skochilenko to authorities, an act she later defended. "I am proud of what I've done. Is it not a disgrace to see a crime and then just walk by?" the shopper reportedly said. Russian authorities used CCTV footage to track Skochilenko, eventually apprehending her after she was lured back to a friend's home.

Skochilenko recounts being grabbed by individuals who did not identify themselves and fearing rape. She endured hours of interrogation about whether she was part of an organized activism group. She was charged with spreading "fake" information about Russian forces, a charge that carried a seven-year sentence.

Her health deteriorated significantly in St. Petersburg's Detention Centre No. 5. Skochilenko, who suffers from celiac disease, bipolar disorder, and a heart condition, alleged that prosecutors denied her essential medicines. She described being forced to choose between eating gluten, which would make her gravely ill, or starving. The diet she received consisted mainly of cabbage or potatoes, with insufficient options for breakfast or lunch.

She was housed in a cell with 17 other prisoners, under constant surveillance. Skochilenko claims fellow inmates, reportedly cooperating with prison authorities, engaged in psychological torture, including gaslighting her about her smell and forcing her to repeatedly wash clothes in freezing conditions. She was also made to watch pro-war television programs for extended periods.

Skochilenko later learned that her prison mates may have been intentionally assigned to inflict abuse due to growing media attention on her case. She was also prohibited from communicating with her then-girlfriend, now wife, Sofya Subbotina, for a year while Subbotina was questioned as a witness. Her family had relocated to France due to fears of state pressure.

Prison conditions were described as harsh, with inadequate bedding and extreme cold. Skochilenko noted that guards sometimes forgot prisoners during their allotted exercise time in a small, barred courtyard. She believes staying physically active, by jogging laps in the courtyard, was crucial to her mental survival and physical well-being.

During her year-long trial, Skochilenko spent eight to nine hours daily in a court cage, facing restrictions on water and bathroom access. In November 2023, she was convicted under laws enacted after the invasion, which criminalize anti-war activism. The sentence sparked international criticism.

Despite the harsh sentence, Skochilenko described a sense of acceptance, viewing her time as a slow progression towards freedom. A year after her sentencing, she was moved from her prison without knowing her destination. She was eventually told she was part of a political prisoner exchange.

Skochilenko was flown to Ankara, Turkey, and then to Cologne, Germany, as part of a 16-person exchange that also included Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and US Marine Paul Whelan. She now resides in Berlin with her wife, continuing her anti-war activism through art and music, including an upcoming comic book documenting her prison experience. She maintains she does not regret her initial act of defiance, calling it "a journey of my life. But it is years of turmoil all over a sticker."