Human rights activists have questioned the voluntary nature of contracts signed by prisoners in Chechnya.

Data on the number of prisoners sent from Chechen colonies to the SVO zone cannot be verified, but the voluntary nature of the contracts signed with the Ministry of Defense is questionable, human rights activists have pointed out.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," more than 570 prisoners from Chechen colonies have signed military contracts with the Ministry of Defense. Chechnya is "in first place" in terms of recruiting activity in prisons, the head of the republic's Federal Penitentiary Service stated.

A human rights activist familiar with the situation in Chechnya stated that there are no specifics about pressure on prisoners to sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense, with the exception of one case.

23:45 05.01.2026

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A native of the village of Shalazhi, Anzor Chergizov, was forcibly sent to the war zone from the prison colony shortly before the end of his sentence, having previously complained about the actions of the prison administration.

"There was a case when prisoners from the Naursk prison colony filed a complaint about extortion and other violations. More than 30 people signed it. If I'm not mistaken, only Chergizov was sent to Ukraine, although he had little time left to serve. But it's unclear how he alone was forced to sign the contract," he said.

The human rights activist doesn't trust the statement by the head of the republic's Federal Penitentiary Service about "First place" in terms of the number of contracts signed by convicts.

"I'm sure this isn't true. Many prison colonies in the regions have been closed because convicts signed contracts and went to Ukraine. Chechnya is likely second to last in this regard. Ingushetia may be in last place because it doesn't have any prison colonies," he believes.

According to him, there's also no information about Chechen prisoners being transferred from other regions to the Chechen Republic.

"In Chechnya, there aren't any particularly improved conditions for signing contracts; quite the opposite, actually." "Contract soldiers are paid the least when they sign contracts in Chechnya," the human rights activist noted.

Political scientist Ruslan Kutayev*, in turn, believes that the statement by the head of the Chechen Federal Penitentiary Service is justified.

"He can't be lying, because there are statistics, but I don't think all prisoners will rush to sign contracts, so to speak, to cries of 'Hurray!' and there's probably some coercion involved. But that's purely my guess," he said.

Chair of the Civic Assistance Committee* Svetlana Gannushkina* reported that their organization hasn't received any complaints from prisoners in Chechnya. At the same time, she believes it is possible that the statement by the Federal Penitentiary Service of the Chechen Republic is true.

"They are also first in terms of recruitment to the SVO. This is their price for lack of control in everything else. I think the statements are quite realistic," Gannushkina* said.

Coercion to sign contracts is widespread in Chechnya.

Analysts familiar with the situation in Chechnya have repeatedly called coercion to sign contracts typical for the republic. In September 2024, it became known that security forces had detained five Azerbaijani citizens in Chechnya and were forcing them to sign military contracts; after this information was made public, the foreign citizens were released and returned to their homeland. In November of that year, reports emerged that security forces in Chechnya were conducting house-to-house visits and detaining men, offering them a choice between being sent to the front or facing criminal prosecution for visiting Telegram channels critical of the Chechen authorities. Three 16-year-old schoolchildren had been held in a Grozny security agency without charge since December 2024, human rights activists reported in the summer of 2025. Within two weeks of this publication, the teenagers were released on the condition that their relatives sign contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense. Lawyers qualified this situation as hostage-taking.

The "Caucasian Knot" also wrote that at the end of January, Kadyrov spoke out against negotiations with Ukraine, stating that he considered it right to continue the special military operation "until the end." On February 5, he reported that 20 natives of Chechnya had been returned from Ukrainian captivity, and journalists discovered a convicted child sexual abuser and a former official among the released "Akhmatovites."

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