shouldn't this video be called 'a look into Russia's judicial system'? only about a third of the video is about prisons. Whereas the whole could be said to be about the judicial system. excellent video btw.

5:55 "Judges should hold the government accountable to the same laws as the citizenry." Yeah, They should. So why don't they?

Peace, land, and bread. But you forgot alcohol.

The world get's a little bit better when Will uploads a new video.

I would like to add that a reason why Russians Tzars hesitated to implement reforms (from Peter ton Nicholas the II) was because of the lack of a strong middle class in Russia. In Europe, monarchs had (in the 16th to 18th centuries) the support of cities, merchants, trade companies and a rising middle class, as they considered the monarch would protect them from the Church and Noblemen. This funded all the palaces, mercenaries, universities, academies and bureaucracies. Russia, however, up unitl the 20th century never had a strong middle class. Peter the Great built the Russian Navy and Petrograd with money from the Boyars (Russian Nobility), to which he offered more power over the serfs. Catherine outlawed the movement of serfs on St Basil Day, the only day in which serfs could move from one landlord to another. Serfdom was abolished in Russia in 1861.

A couple of Chechnyans are en route to your home now for some “tea”.

Off to gulag now

you need more gulag

How about a video about what it's like "inside" the Russian prison system....

I service cctv cameras and they very rarely almost never go off during “maintenance” and I work on big sites such shopping centres and also train stations so that’s bull

As a history buff, I'm very impressed with how you base your channel off of legitimate sources. Also, the graphics are A1 and I can tell you are a passionate student of the subject matter. Remember, history is context and context is everything. Keep up the amazing work!

Makes you think when you realize that Russia used the same melody for their anthem for 3 different forms of government.

Video starts at 10:40

I just found your channel a few days ago and was extremely sad to see how long it had been since you last upload. I am so excited to see you producing more content! Going to your patreon now. :D

Absolutely fascinating! Great work!

Didn’t expect you to know Spanish, very nice! 👍🏻 Knowing more than a single language helps the world stay together as a people rather than as nations.

Is 1 word, 5 letter)) G U L A G

2:40 Gotta love, how they opted to cover the assassination with a snow plough. When there was no snow. 😅

I love the little undertones of how amazing it is in the west. "traditional prisons that we recognize in the west" and the talk about liberty being blind and individuals being subjected to same rights as the government. To that I can only say, HA, HA, HA. First focus on corporations having same rights as individuals. Then you can focus on your government. As for "traditional prisons".. i suggest you go look at your solitary confinement prisons. Or Guantanamo bay. I am not saying Russia or US are perfect, but hearing these little undertones of how no other country compares to the "amazingness and correctness that is the US", is laughable. For the rest, very good documentaries. Very much enjoyed them. Keep up the good work!

+The Exploration I really hope you see this comment, as I'd hate to see you discredit yourself with more videos like this one. Note: I'm a senior law student in the Moscow State University. I haven't stepped foot in Russia before starting my education, have no Russian blood and no ties to Russia, apart from my education and the friends i've made. I will point out errors in the video in a chronological order: 1. the Nemtsov case has pretty much nothing to do with the Russian judicial system. It's highly inappropriate to judge a whole system based on a single (highly controversial) case; 2. there is no rule according to which cases are always tried with a jury in district courts. It's possible (if the defendant wants it), but not mandatory; 3. the Russian Supreme Court also has the right to judicial review, but it's done in a different way and is not based on checking weather laws are in accordance to the constitution; 4. there's basically not a single correct statement in the whole segment about the Supreme arbitration court (which was just a part of the arbitration court system). After the fall of the Soviet Union, the court system was in dire need of heavy reform. That was especially true in regards to the "simple" courts that use to try ordinary criminal and civil cases. At the same time the seeds of capitalism were being sown in Russia and the newly created businesses needed legal protection "here and now". This is why the parliament made a compromise: it allowed the old soviet arbitration tribunals to continue functioning (under the new laws) and to serve the new economy, while the main part of the court system was being reformed. The system was never intended to live forever. After the judicial reforms were completed the second part of the plan was set in motion and the court systems were merged. Why was this necessary? Very simple - imagine the US having two separate supreme courts. Who will be the boss of whom? No matter how much they cooperate, sooner or later they will pass different decisions on the same matter. Who will you listen to? Both are supreme, right? Well, that's what was going on in Russia, but on a much bigger scale. The courts didn't agree on a slew of issues (not because one is the governments puppet and the other isn't) and this was becoming a huge problem. This is why the final step was made and the Supreme arbitration court was dissolved and it's judges were moved to the "ordinary" Supreme Court, where they were given positions on the same level as the rest of the Supreme Court judges. Seriously, where did you even get the whole "weakened subset from"? This is complete BS... sorry for the language, bold statements really get to me; 5. all courts (not just the commercial / arbitration courts) post all of their decisions online and give full access not only to the decisions, but to the proceedings as well. This is required by law; 6. there are indeed problems with judicial independence. But it surely isn't as bad as you make it out to be; 7. there is consistency when applying the law (one of the main Supreme Court functions is to assure consistency); 8. the regime is indeed more and more authoritarian and this is worrying; 9. the statement about the decreasing instances where a case can be tried by a jury is not just false, it's completely opposite to the truth. The amount of cases that can be tried by a jury has actually increased over the years; 10. You didn't give us Shiraev's opinion, you gave us his review of the international criticism in regards to the Russian judicial system. 11. there is a serious problem with high-profile political cases; 12. there is a problem with torture in county jails. For a long time it was ignored, the government started taking serious steps only several months ago; 13. the modern Russian prison system has NOTHING in common with gulags; 14. there are dozens of countries that "promote" reliable inmates in order to help with the administration of the prison; 15. promoted inmates create inhumane conditions while guards turn a blind eye and just watch the walls??? Where did you get that from? What's with the slew of bold statements!?; 16. the fact that there are no colonies in the center of Moscow is somehow news? By law prisoners are sent to the nearest colony possible, comparing this to the Siberian exiles of old is absurd; 17. what you show on screen are thousands of Km, not hundreds; 18. very few colonies are inaccessible during the winter and that's only by road! You make it sound like they are completely inaccessible. Usually helicopters are used during the winter. Same as with hundreds of villages and some cities in Russia (welcome to the north); 19. as i've said, torture is indeed a problem, but the conviction rate has absolutely nothing to do with it. Russia has such a high conviction rate because of the way success is measured. A state prosecutor's success is valued exclusively by looking at statistics. This is why when there is any doubt that a case will be won, the prosecutor returns the case to the investigator (for further investigation or closure) and doesn't even attempt to try it. It's a problem and at this time no one is really working on a solution; 20. there is no forced labour in Russia, but i'm not upset over this mistake. It's a common misconception, because of the way the criminal code is written and the specifics of the Russian language. There is no way to translate the labour part of the criminal code without either twisting the literal translation, or making it sound like there are labour camps. In truth there is no such thing as forced labour in penal colonies and people living in them are glad to participate in the workshops (on their free will) since it gives them something to do and pass the time. Same as working in the prison kitchen in the USA - almost everyone wants to do it. Overall almost all of your statements regarding the judicial and penal systems were incorrect which is obviously unacceptable. I almost get the feeling that you intentionally sought out only negative criticism and further twisted the information you found. I hope that in the future you will abstain from this approach Sorry for posting all of your mistakes publicly, but I felt that this is the only way to stop the misinformation.

The Stanford experiment should show that leaving inmates in charge is a TERRIBLE idea

Do a video about the corruption in the US.

YAY ANOTHER VIDEO! I love your videos! They're so informative!

Over half a million under Stalin? That’s an understatement it was more like 45 million

I don't know if there is a lot to cover, but you could make a video about how death penalties work(ed) around the world

An American criticising the judicial system of Russia is a bit too ironic for my taste

Excellent video. Will be keeping up with your content

I'm so glad that you have continued your journalistic activities. There simply aren't enough people doing what you are.

Seeing the notification for this video really got my day started on high note

best youtuber on historical topics because you have the best delivery.

Shouldn't the title be: What is the Russian justice system like?

Will, 11:34 . I may have mistaken some info, but 200km is distance equal about the diameter of the circle around Moscow on 11:49 . This 200km has nothing to be compared to Syberia exiles. So it is very confusing to put it in context of syberian purges. I never did a research, but guess that 200-500 km is a regular remoteness for 'colonies' (and honestly I find it ok) while being moved to Syberia is kind of a rare practice for those who live to the West of Russia. One more thing, I guess, noone knows what Chechen stands for, and it is even difficult to make clear in order to google this noun properly. A text comment might make it better.

Click here for a free two month trial of Skillshare! skl.sh/exploration Join me for Susan Orlean’s writing course or try out any of the 17,000+ classes. Sidenote- this comment section should be fun! Call out whataboutism if you see it. Yes, I will be doing a video about the American prison system. @williamcfox

A lot seem to forget that Russia culturally isn't "Western" (American, British, French, etc.) despite it looking like it at first glance (relatively modern infrastructure and tech, similar designs in things like clothes/cars/etc., they have white skin, etc.). and their court system has to reflect that. I'm not saying their court system is inherently better or worse, but rather it needs to be looked at, not from a Western view, but rather how it effects the Russian people. Some cultures actually do _better_ under a more authoritarian government, just look at what happens when nations in Africa or the Middle East have democracy forced upon them, they turn in to dysfunctional messes. Now unlike those sort of countries, Russia is more stable and can handle a less authoritarian system better, but I must point out that a lot of Russia's history has been very difficult, the harsh environment, the enormous size (logistics nightmare), the regular famines, and the general antagonism by the West towards it (warranted or not, the average Russian citizen really had no say in it), the horrors of communism for ~75 years. Although modern technology has been a huge improvement for a lot of those issues, the culture formed from the days of old remains (A lot of it developed as survival tactics). Centralized power generally makes the place more stable. Obviously a straight up autocracy or such probably wouldn't be good (and no, despite paranoia, Putin isn't plotting to form USSR V2.0 minus the communism). So the centralization of the courts does not surprise me, and unlike if were to happen in the West, I wouldn't say it's an inherently bad move. I suppose time will tell... If you want a more "at home example" look at American culture. While very similar to European culture, the US was born out of rebellion against the most powerful nation on Earth, and fought and conquered it's way westward, and because of that, firearms are a REALLY big deal to a lot of Americans, while in Europe many are banned and the people didn't really care.

You're the best! Hope to have the means to support you on patreon soon.

I'm new here but you quickly earned my sub. Anyone ever told you that you look like a young David Wood, from Act's 17 Apologetics KZfaq channel?

Forgot you changed your name haha. Glad to see you back with another video.

Really well structured video. Can you do a video on the Polish and Japanese judicial/prison systems please? Also no offense, but I think you should work more on your thumbnails. You would get way more views that way and they would do justice to the actual content :D

Can we also get a video on the regressing judicial systems of the West? That's one theme we seem to have in common with Russia :)

Considering the title, the offer at the beginning sounded very scary until it said "classes".

Do a video on the Holodmor.

You should put chapters in or a timestamp in the description so we can skip to the point you start talking about the actual prison system.

Good video. Howevery, I didn't like that you didn't translate the spanish newspaper at minute 8. I often dont look at the video itself and only listen and when that part came up I was too slow to realize that you switched to spanish and had to jump back to read what it meant.

Fun fact: The upper House of Parliament is in fact still called the Soviet. The Soviet Federatsi to be exact, a name that can be translated as the Federal Governing Council.

Cool video, I really hope state-funded Russian troll army won't find it

Wow. This was a WHOLE hell of a lot more interesting than I was expecting. Imagine a standing ovation from me. First video of yours I've seen and I'm subscribed already.

don't assume your audience can understand spanish -.-

"This video contains descriptions of torture" We're in for quite the ride then!

Incoming Kremlin trolls

Your channel is fantastic! You deliver coherent, structured and entertaining ways of teaching history. Great job man.

What is the Russian Prison System Like? gulags

What’s its like..Russian breakfast = Vodka + Siberian Weather with a tinge of darkly Russian humour.

Putin obviously acts like a dictator (hence why he is described as one here in the west) but he is a smart dictator. He avoids the political instability that western democracies have by eliminating the opposition. A country would be much stronger if it’s population wasn’t divided in half (like here in the west). Putin has learned from Russian history that as soon as there is an ounce of opposition in the government, chaos ensues. Justin think of the times in Russian history when dictators ruled, such as Ivan the Terrible or Stalin. These are also periods of times where Russia was strong and was able to defend off foreign invaders. Putin is doing a good thing by making sure that his country stays united, especially in this day and age where there are a lot of powerful countries opposing Russia. However, the way in which he is doing it violates many international laws and is quite questionable. Is Putin a bad person? To Russians, no (mostly). To the west, yes. But that is because the west has a different viewpoint. The west has never experienced a dictator as powerful as the dictators that Russia has had. Understanding and questioning Putin’s viewpoint is close to impossible, so it’s better to leave it alone otherwise you might share the same fate as Boris Nemstov. Do I support what Putin is doing? Of course not, he is killing hundreds, if not thousands of his own people. What I wrote is just how I see Putin’s viewpoint. Do note that this is all just my *OPINION* and what I wrote is not facts. If you want to disagree with my opinion, you are free to do so. Just do it in a reasonable manner.

Kasparov the former World Champion in chess at 4:08 on the left. He's a well-known and very vocal critic of Putin and is somehow still alive.

Russian -Prison- gulag System Like?

When I get older and have kids, I hope I know more than one language so I can teach them each a different language. I don’t want them plotting against me together.

There is no such thing as torturing a Muslim. All torturing on Muslims are justified. That’s how we keep the world free and democratic.

This channel is amazing. High-quality content: well researched, impartial and candid. More than decent presentation: great graphics, relevant video images, smooth editing. Plus the presenter seems like a great guy. Saludos desde Ann Arbor!

I cant really take an American criticising Russia seriously.

I lost your channel a while back and always to find your old videos for some reason couldn't find it. Thank sweet GOD I found it.

Donald Trump has wet dreams about being Vladimir Putin.

4:35 Funnily enough the UK has Magistrates Courts. Appeals from these courts are heard in Crown Courts by a Judge and two Magistrates. Cases of first instance tried in the Crown Court are tried by a Judge and Jury, appeals from this court are heard by Court of Appeal.

I don't understand why you'd go through the trouble of shutting down all of the cameras on that bridge, but deliberately leave one on. Just turn them all off, right?

Another great video Will.. It was 17 minutes well spent. Keep up the great work!

15:00 You know I'm not a big bread guy. It's just all carbs.

Love these videos. It's like an entire documentary in 17 minutes without all the stuff you don't care about.

"Extend the dictatorship of the proletariat" does not mean be a dictator over the people but rather make the people the rulers (give power to the people). He misuses it in his NK prison videos as well.

I just found your channel and I'm loving it! Keep doing what you're doing!!

your youtube channel is amazing

Keep up the good work! Its channels like this that give me faith in humanity.

Amazing video! I love how you dived deep, and gave a very objective view of the situation.

The first thing you see in the opening is a torture warning. Not even suprised

just found your channel and I'm amazed by your insight and content. Wow. Thank you

3:40 Too the right IS THAT PUTIN WITH WIG???! lol

Very Informative Video 💯

I think a better title would be, "What is the Russian Justice System Like?". This would cover the judicial, police and prison systems covered in the clip.

In 1991 I remember thinking that Russia has no experience with western style democracy. It'll be a restoration of a form of "Tsarism" or Anarchy.

Really interesting stuff man, deffo sticking around to see more of this. A great channel for those wanting to understand the world rather than bash it or their countries.

This should be interesting.. "This video has description of torture." That escalated quickly.

In post soviet countries there is a dark joke that there are mostly two kinds of people in russia. Ones who are in jail and ones who are guarding them

Spanish delivery was PERFECT.

Prison system? More like judiciary system. The title is misleading

Straight out the fucking gate... *"This video contains descriptions of torture."*

This isn't really about the person's system it's more about the political Injustice system

Fantastic storytelling Will. You connected the distant past, recent past and present seamlessly. As someone that spent a bit of time playing with a product photography studio...and geek out on such things... Your lighting is a nice color temperature for realistic color rendering. If I were in your position, I'd want a bit more warmth for 'storytelling.' In my mind the perfect lighting environment for story telling is a bright morning coffee shop lighting environment. If your lighting color temp is 5.5k you might edit it to around 4.2k-4.6k in software. This would soften your skin tones and create a warmer visual. The story may be cold, but your direct to camera footage should bring the audience to the warmth of home IMO. ...coming from a guy that just records with a phone camera and junk these days..but I'm a disabled gimp now... What your building is exciting and worth the time investment to tweak the details. Just my $0.002Adcents ;) -Jake

DUDE I WOULD CARRY YOU OUT OF THE BATTLEFIELD AND THANK YOU

Maybe you should change the title to 'What is the Russian Legal System Like?' As i thought this was going to be a look at conditions inside Russian prisons.

That was a great video, well researched and everything. Thanks.

Great video, but the background music is a bit frustrating. I get what you're after, but it takes focus from your story.

You're amongst my favourite creators on youtube!

My boy is back!

This man teach me in the school, it was in 2014 and he came from the united states to Spain, Mejorada del campo, Madrid

You should get a second pair of glasses with the lenses removed. It'll negate the reflection from the computer screen.

This was a great video! Awesome job, thank you!

Wait, this was about the prison system? You brought prisons up for all of maybe 10 seconds. Video needs a retitle. That said, the video itself was very good, and enjoyable to listen to. Keep up the awesome work.

Well, this was not the kind of video i wanted to see acording to the title, but it was extremely interesting nonetheless. Thank you very much :)

In many things you're right. Though there is one big issue with this video: Like the rest of the world, you show Putin having almost "absolute" control (yes, he is a world-wide popular politician), while in reality he's got very little, at least on an internal political arena. The dominating ruling party, "United Russia", is liberal democratic to its core in its worst form, where most of the decisions and laws are made based on corruption and personal gain of its members. Indeed, this party formally allow opposition to exist but they will never let it gain enough power to actually change something, less overthrow the foremost. Does it remind you of some other countries? The main difference here is that while Putin officially belongs to the ruling party, his political actions (since his first presidency) are actually against it. Thus there is a serious and constant confrontation between Putin and the rest of the party, especially with its irremovable prime minister. Don't get me wrong, I'm not sanctifying Putin or anything, I am certain he's got his own motives for doing what he does and he is still alive, working as a president, not because of his great looks. Still, all his political deeds (emphasis on political) were always aimed towards Russia's economical and political independence (the thing that, it's not a secret, current Russia does not have as per its own constitution). Meanwhile the rest of "United Russia" is in full coordination with its original creator: UK, UN and USA, because there's a lot of profit for both sides that comes from this relationship. While Europe and US debilitates one of their main economical and political opponents, Russian executives consolidate their internal financial power - everyone wins. To blame Putin for Nemtsov's death is at least stupid, because he's got his own forces behind him that can (and have done many times already) get rid of his enemies in a more elegant and quieter way (and without actually killing a person). Sloppy assassinations, convenient bad quality footages and information pointing in only one direction have always been a sign of a plot against the accused (e.g. the Skripal's case). Do you really think that a person who is an ex-agent and who now controls the agency he came from would fail so epically and discredit himself? Unfortunately, the real political assassinations are always perfect. Just take a quick history review of the last century.

If they force confessions out of the first suspect they arrest, and don't move on to other suspects, that must mean nearly everybody serving time in Russian prisons are innocent. I'm willing to bet only a handful of convicts in the entire prison population of the country are actually guilty of the crimes they're accused of.

I think the audio isn't in sync with this video...

Prisons should be harsh hellholes, always, everywhere. Period.