Why They Torture People in Russia

This fall, evidence of widespread torture in Russia emerged, with the Gulagu.net project releasing a video showing Russian prisoners being beaten and sexually abused. Despite the severity, the footage has not drawn significant public attention, partly because many find it hard to empathize with the victims. Torture poses a threat even to those who have never been incarcerated, as ordinary citizens can find themselves tied to a chair in a police station and forced to confess crimes they did not commit. In this episode, we discuss how and why innocent people are tortured by Russian police, how they can recover, who has been fighting this injustice for years, and whether there is any chance that such lawlessness will diminish. Let’s go!