In a Russian prison, Ukrainian captives were forced to sing the anthem of the Russian Federation: what they were punished for.

According to inkorr.com: In one of the Russian prisons where Ukrainian journalist Dmytro Khiliuk was held, captives were forced to perform the anthem of Russia and the song 'Smuglyanka'. The prisoners were shocked that Ukrainians did not know these songs, and therefore they printed the lyrics on paper. The punishments for refusing to sing were severe.

Conditions of Imprisonment

Regarding 'brainwashing', the imposition of Russian narratives - Dmytro Khiliuk stated that in the prison where he was held, the ideological work was 'not up to standard'. 'No, there was nothing like that. In Pakino, the ideological work was set up very poorly. This is because in Novozybkov, we were perceived as prisoners of war, and the local pre-trial detention center was under the Ministry of Defense. The Pakinsky prison was an ordinary prison, without political officers or anything. They treated us like convicts and treated us as such,' the journalist recounts.

The conditions in which the Ukrainian journalist was held were extremely harsh, with aggressive propaganda and unacceptable conditions of imprisonment.

This situation highlights the brutal realities faced by Ukrainian citizens captured during the conflict. The conditions of detention, as well as the psychological pressure, have a serious impact on the morale of the captives, which is the main goal of such methods. The challenges they face demonstrate not only the cruelty of the system but also the resilience of people in terrible circumstances.