Hunger Strike, Day 6: Punishment Cell No. 6 and its "Animal World" – Political Prisoner Narek Samsonyan
Warm greetings from "Armavir" Penitentiary.
As many of you are already aware, under the direct responsibility of Prosecutor Hayk Avetyan and Judge Manvel Shahverdyan—who, according to press reports, is acting under the threat of criminal prosecution—my friend Vazgen Saghatelyan and I are being held in obviously illegal imprisonment. Since the January 9, I have been on an indefinite hunger strike. Today marks the 6th day of my hunger strike, and since my defense attorney, Ruben Melikyan, also touched upon the "animal world" of my current 4-square-meter cell, I decided to tell you a little about Punishment Cell No. 6.
First and foremost, I want to tell you that these inhumane conditions are not a depressing or distressing factor for me at all. Moreover, every subsequent similar step by the regime creates even greater motivation for me to walk my chosen path with my head held high. Therefore, view this post more in the context of mocking their actions and telling you and the whole world what I have seen with my own eyes in this country, and never as a complaint or whining. Let me tell you: in the context of being persecuted by them, I am ready to carry out my hunger strike even in a 1-square-meter cell, and that will not break me, but quite the opposite—it will motivate me.
So, after declaring a hunger strike, I was moved to punishment cell/solitary confinement cell No. 6 in the punishment block, contrary to the requirement of the law, which states in black and white: "...the conditions of a cell specially separated for a hunger strike shall not be worse than the minimum standards defined by this regulation and the conditions the detainee or convict had prior to declaring the hunger strike" (Clause 338 of Article 26 of the Internal Regulations of Penitentiary Institutions of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia). After the fact of my transfer to a punishment cell following the hunger strike was made public, the Penitentiary Service commented to factor.am, stating that my cell in the punishment block does not differ in any way from my main cell. Now, let us see together what a "truthful" Penitentiary Service leadership we are dealing with, and what a compassionate and law-abiding, democratic Ministry of Justice we have.
So, Punishment Cell No. 6 is a very small area of 4 square meters, where my bed, a small sink, and a small table bolted to the floor with two small chairs in front of it barely fit. Behind the table is the unsanitary toilet; leaving its door open is fraught with the danger of a sanitary disaster. The walls of the cell are eroded in places due to dampness, and the floor, like the walls, is damp in places—concrete with eroded sections. I am being honest, I have never seen such a prison cell in my life, but since the Penitentiary Service says that this is no different from my previous holding cell, I believe them and think: perhaps this is what "Real Armenia" looks like? Maybe I am seeing things wrong, or maybe all the prison cells I have seen were exactly like this? In any case, how could the Penitentiary Service of "Real Armenia" deceive or tell a lie to cover up an obvious illegality? There is just a small exception here: the cockroaches and bedbugs that have taken up permanent residence in Punishment Cell No. 6 due to unsanitary conditions do not agree with the Penitentiary Service (admit it, this is the complete image of "Real Armenia").
Let me say more: every day, when I convince myself, "How could the Penitentiary Service lie? I must be seeing things wrong," the bedbugs immediately prove the opposite with their practical work in the morning. And when they bring me pest control products from outside, those accepting the packages refuse to take it, reasoning that there are special "man sprayers" in the institution who deal with this. I have not seen them during these 5 days, although they "are supposed to come" every day. Now I am thinking, could they have come and I didn't notice, or did that "sprayed chemicals" have the opposite effect? In short, very contradictory feelings have formed, but let me tell you that parallel to this, an expectation has also formed regarding the replenishment of the punishment cell's "animal world": for 4 days now, I have been waiting for the rats, which are nowhere to be found. I think the rats are waiting for instructions from the Penitentiary Service to finally and thoroughly substantiate that the punishment cell of a person on hunger strike is exactly identical to or differs in no way from their previous conditions.
I don't know what to say; this is simply a farce, and a very laughable farce. In their opinion, this should depress or distress me, but honestly, all of this brings a smile to my face—exactly the same smile I had in our elevator when the NSS anti-terrorist masked squad twisting my arms was trying to take me downstairs.
All of this will receive a concrete assessment tomorrow, and rest assured that after this regime is gone, the punishment block of "Armavir" Penitentiary will be renovated and brought to a humane appearance so that even a person detained/convicted for the gravest crime does not serve their punishment in such inhumane and unsanitary conditions. As for the hunger strikers, we’ll think about them.
P.S. By the way, my initial demand for declaring a hunger strike remains unfulfilled, and the full legal responsibility for the consequences of all this lies with Prosecutor Hayk Avetyan and Judge Manvel Shahverdyan. Well, as for the names of those politically responsible, you know them better than I do.
Determination, Self-sacrifice, Victory !
Political Prisoner Narek Samsonyan
Day 6 of Hunger Strike
Day 62 of Illegal Imprisonment
"Armavir" Penitentiary, Punishment Cell No. 6
14.01.2026
