RFE/RL reports abuse allegations at Kremlin-funded Russian patriotic camp
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RFE/RL reports that children at the Bogatyrskaya Zastava military-patriotic camp near Omsk were allegedly beaten and subjected to physical punishment. The camp received about $60,000 from Russia's Presidential Grants Fund this year and operates with the Omsk Diocese and the Russian Community group. The Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case over unlawful actions against a minor.
Key Facts
- An 11-year-old boy returned from a 12-day camp session in July with bruises and a compression fracture of his spine, according to his mother's social media post.
- The Investigative Committee in the Omsk region has opened a criminal case over "unlawful actions against a minor."
- Bogatyrskaya Zastava received about $60,000 from Russia's Presidential Grants Fund this year.
- The camp has operated for nearly two decades and says more than 4,800 children have attended over the past 19 years.
Allegations of Abuse
Olga Belko said her son was repeatedly beaten by three older boys and was afraid to complain because the violence became worse after he initially sought help. She wrote that he was systematically beaten every other night and that his complaints of back pain to a camp medic and unit commander were ignored. A family friend told RFE/RL's Russian Service that adults at the camp also participated in the punishments, including pouring liquid soap into his mouth and a commander dropping him to the ground. RFE/RL states it cannot independently verify these accounts of abuse.
Further Allegations
After the boy's story became public, two families told RFE/RL that their children had also been beaten or subjected to other physical punishment at the camp in 2024 and 2025. Their accounts include punches to the chest that children called "breaking plywood," liquid soap poured into children's mouths, and older children assaulting younger ones while adult staff failed to intervene. One mother said her 10-year-old son returned from the camp in 2024 with a large bruise on his back and later disclosed that older boys had beaten him. She claimed the children were told such treatment represented "military traditions" and they should get used to it because "when you grow up, you'll be a soldier."
Camp Background
Bogatyrskaya Zastava operates in cooperation with the Omsk Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church and an ultra-nationalist group called Russian Community. The camp has operated for nearly two decades and says more than 4,800 children have attended over the past 19 years.
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RFE/RL reports abuse allegations at Kremlin-funded Russian patriotic camp
