A new story from Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s ‘Prison’s People’ has been published in the Russian magazine The New Times.

The tale is about so-called ‘red’ and ‘black’ prison colonies in Russia. The ‘red’ ones are apparently more disciplined with prison warders officially in control, while the ‘black’ colonies are known for their unwritten ‘rules’ and criminal ‘ideology’, with the result that the prison is essentially governed by its inmates.  But nowadays, the differences between ‘red’ and ‘black’ prisons are diminishing with both types slipping into an essentially bureaucratic lawlessness – symptomatic of the whole of Russian society.

“The main character of today’s story is Vyacheslav. It was his job to ‘introduce’ me, a newcomer, to the ‘red’ rules of the colony. The standard procedure did not work – he couldn’t beat me up as I knew the law better. So a few days later we moved on to a heart to heart talk.”

Read full story of Vyacheslav in Russian HERE.