Pussy Riot member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova was considered missing when her whereabouts were unclear after apparently transferring to a different prison following her hunger strike.
Russia's prison ombudsman, Vladimir Lukin, confirmed through wire service ITAR-TASS that Tolokonnikova has been transferred to Siberia and explained the reasoning for why the 23-year-old musician-activist hadn't been heard from, The Associated Press reports. "After a transfer to another prison, inmates are quarantined for 10 days."
Lukin mentioned that Tolokonnikova ended the hunger strike that she began back in September. She started the strike in protest of the working conditions at her previous prison, Penal Colony 14 in the republic of Mordovia. After fighting against the conditions and required 16-hour work days, she was essentially forced to give in because of health complications.
Rolling Stone recently reported about the condition of the activist based on information from Russian parliamentary deputy Ilya Ponomarev:
"'She was extremely weak and she had a bad infection, which was very visible - she had a bad rash on her skin.' He says the infection could not be treated while Tolokonnikova wasn't eating, because of health concerns surrounding taking antibiotics without food. 'She was very bad,' he adds. 'They were saying that unrecoverable damage was approaching, and I think they were right.'"
Tolokonnikova is currently serving a two-year-sentence on charges of "premeditated hooliganism," which came about with the infamous Pussy Riot protests at Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior in February of 2012.
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