Russia’s Alliance of Doctors trade union has called for jailed opposition politician Aleksei Navalny to receive “qualified treatment” after he was moved to a sick ward after complaining of a cough and temperature.
Navalny said in an Instagram post on April 5 that doctors had officially diagnosed him with a “severe cough” and a temperature of 38.1 degrees Celsius, which indicates a slight fever, after a third prisoner in his quarters had been sent to the hospital with suspected tuberculosis.
Sergei Ryabkov, the deputy head of the medical trade union, told Current Time late on April 5 that while the prison infirmary has “professional doctors,” they work in conditions where they are not provided with enough equipment to manage a patient.”
“The medical infirmary at the penitentiary is an isolation ward. They isolated [Navalny] because he showed symptoms of an infectious disease. That is good, but what he needs is not just isolation but qualified treatment,” Ryabkov said, adding that the union will hold a “humanitarian action” near the prison to support Navalny. Current Time is the Russian-language TV network run by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA.
President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic is currently incarcerated in Correctional Colony No. 2, about 100 kilometers from Moscow, which is known as one of the toughest penitentiaries in Russia.
Navalny said his prison unit consists of 15 people, three of whom have been hospitalized with suspected tuberculosis since he arrived.
Tuberculosis is a potentially serious infectious disease that mainly affects the lungs and is spread from person to person through tiny droplets released into the air, mainly via coughs and sneezes.
It has largely been eradicated in developed countries and a person with a healthy immune system often successfully fights it.
In his April 5 post, Navalny said his prison unit has been fed clay-like porridge and frozen potatoes. He is currently on a hunger strike to demand better conditions. Malnutrition and weight loss undermine an immune system’s ability to fight tuberculosis.
“I have a legally guaranteed right to invite a specialist doctor at my own expense. I will not give up this right as prison doctors can be trusted just as much as state TV,” the 44-year-old said in the Instagram post.
Navalny had previously complained of acute back and leg pain as well as sleep deprivation by guards.
Navalny criticized recent news reports by state-owned media that he is serving in a prison with comfortable conditions. He invited state media correspondents to come stay the night in his prison with tuberculosis-infected cellmates.
Russian police arrested Navalny in January upon his return from Germany on charges of violating his parole while abroad, sparking large-scale protests. The anti-corruption fighter had been recuperating in Berlin for several months after being poisoned with a military-grade nerve agent in Siberia.
Navalny has accused agents of Russia’s Federal Security Service of attempting to assassinate him with the poison.
A Moscow court in February found him guilty of violating the terms of his parole from an older embezzlement case that is widely considered to be politically motivated.
His suspended 3 1/2-year sentence was converted into jail time, though the court reduced that amount to 2 1/2 years for time already served in detention.
Navalny’s imprisonment has caused a chorus of international criticism, with the United States and its allies demanding his unconditional release and vowing to continue to hold those responsible for his poisoning to account.
