Donetsk leftist activist Artyom Borodin has been in the Bishkek pre-trial detention center for six months. Most recently, the local authorities refused to grant him political asylum, and now the 27-year-old may face extradition to Russia. The request for this was submitted by the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation at the request of the authorities of the “DPR” — the occupied region of Ukraine, which Kyrgyzstan does not officially recognize as part of the Russian Federation.
Borodin disappeared in Donetsk in March 2022. For 32 days, his family did not know what was wrong with him. It later turned out that he had been detained for posting anti-war trade union leaflets addressed to workers and placed in a basement on Svetly Put Street.
Probably, we are talking about the infamous secret prison “Isolation”, which was located at 3 Svetly Put Street. This is the territory of the former factory, which was occupied by the center for contemporary art before the occupation. In 2014, the militants of the “MGB of the DPR” converted it into a military base, and then organized a prison there for locals with a pro-Ukrainian position and former militants. In the basements, the prisoners were kept without windows, bathrooms, and moved with bags on their heads. Human rights activists and journalists reported dozens of evidence of torture in “Isolation.”
“There [in the basement], Artyom was subjected to both mental and physical pressure to sign the necessary documents for them,” the Borodin support group told ASTRA.
After being tortured in the basement, he was transferred to a pre-trial detention center, where he spent 8 months. Artyom was charged with distributing “extremist” materials. In December 2022, his measure of restraint was changed to house arrest, after which Borodin was able to evacuate from Russia to Kyrgyzstan. He officially registered in a new country and worked until he was put on the wanted list. In August, he was found in cells in Bishkek and placed in a pre-trial detention center.
At the same time, in the decision on his arrest, the Bishkek security forces rely on Article 13 of the law of the “DPR” “On Countering extremist activities”, an article of the region, which the country does not officially recognize as part of the Russian Federation. In addition, several pages are missing from the documents received from the “DPR” in Artyom’s case, including those where signatures and seals should be. Probably, because of these conflicts, Borodin has not yet been transferred to Russia, his lawyer believes.
Borodin’s extradition arrest is scheduled to end on March 4, 2026. Artyom’s support group asks human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists in Kyrgyzstan to help him. The request for the activist’s extradition has not yet been approved.
