Eduard Sviridov after his release from the penal colony. April 2026.
Eduard Sviridov after his release from the penal colony. April 2026.
Ten months in a Kazan penal colony and almost four years in Moscow pretrial detention centers (SIZOs) — Eduard Sviridov, a 61‑year‑old Jehovah's Witness, had been behind bars since August 2021. His sentence for his faith came to an end, and on April 2, 2026, he was released.
"If there were brief moments of anxiety in the colony, they passed quickly," Eduard recalls. Letters from caring people helped distract him from everyday hardships and reassured him of support, while parcels with "all kinds of treats" brought joyful moments. The believer noted the good attitude of staff and other inmates. One of his younger cellmates once said that Eduard had become almost like a father to him.
While in the colony, the man worked for a time as a packer of meat products. The schedule was not easy: on one occasion, Eduard was given only one day off after twenty 10‑hour workdays. "I exercised all the time and tried to keep myself in good shape. Recently there was a lot of work with snow — there was a huge amount of it, and that's also good exercise," the believer added.
Prisoners are deprived of many ordinary comforts that people at liberty may not even notice. "I love trains. I want to take a ride in a carriage, look out the window and dream; watch houses, fields, and trees flicker by; enjoy the scenery," Eduard replied when asked what he would like to do soon after his release. The wait was not long: before long, the Kazan--Moscow train took him home to the capital.
In December 2023, at the same time as Eduard Sviridov, the court sentenced Sean Pike and Aleksandr Rumyantsev to imprisonment as well. They are expected to be released in October 2026 and April 2027, respectively.
