The grand opening of the temple in the pre-trial detention center “Matrosskaya Tishina” was marked by embarrassment

Lawyers complained that “undesirable” prisoners were taken out of the detention center before the ceremony

All the “scandalous” prisoners were taken out of the “Matrosskaya Tishina” pre-trial detention center on the eve of the grand opening of the prison church, which took place on March 14. And all because Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus’ Kirill, Minister of Justice Konstantin Chuichenko and Director of the Federal Penitentiary Service Arkady Gostev took part in the consecration ceremony.

The temple in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow”, built on the territory of the pre-trial detention center, is an exact copy of the one that stood here a hundred years ago and was destroyed by order of the Soviet authorities. Construction began in 2018, and the opening was planned for 2020.

Actually, by this time the temple was erected, the domes and crosses were installed and consecrated. However, the “acceptance” of the temple for some reason was delayed. During the past year, services were held there, which became a reason for complaints from prisoners who were not taken to the temple. According to those who applied, only certain VIP prisoners could visit the temple, and not everyone who wanted to. Then the administration of the pre-trial detention center explained that until the official opening, only convicts from the housekeeping detachment could visit the temple.

It is noteworthy that you can get to the temple through an underground passage that connects it with the sixth building of the pre-trial detention center (where the infectious diseases department of the prison hospital and the special unit are located).

On the eve of the opening, “uncomfortable” prisoners (who complained about the conditions of detention) began to be taken out to various detention centers in Moscow. So, lawyer Natalia Morosnikova said that her client Timur Makarov was taken to SIZO-3. At the same time, when she came to Matrosskaya Tishina, she was told that they could not bring Makarov out, and it was forbidden to report where he was. As a result, she was looking for her ward for a long time. This story became the reason for the preparation of an initiative by human rights activists: to oblige the pre-trial detention center to inform defenders and relatives by SMS or e-mail about cases of transfer to another institution.