ST. PETERSBURG -- A soldier tried to commit suicide in a military unit in Kamenka, near St. Petersburg, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.
A female officer in the unit telephoned the NGO Soldiers' Mothers of St. Petersburg and said a young conscript cut his wrists on October 19 and was placed in the medical unit. According to the officer, officials might try to conceal the incident.
Kamenka became a notorious place for the Russian Army this year after numerous reports of bullying and beating conscripts emerged.
Yelana Popova, a spokesperson for Soldiers' Mothers of St. Petersburg, told RFE/RL the situation in Kamenka remains very tense.
She said several contract soldiers have complained to the NGO that their rights are being abused and they are not able to get out of their contracts.
Earlier this week, an investigation into the alleged beating of a young conscript by three older soldiers at Kamenka was initiated.
This month one soldier's father, who came to Kamenka to protect his son, reported that he had been severely beaten by officers of the unit.