Students at Kazan Federal University said that in their dormitory they have begun being moved into rooms occupied by students from other units. The vacated rooms are to be given to participants in the international business forum Russia-ASEAN, which will take place in June. This was reported by Ostorozhno, Novosti.
According to one KFU student, he had been living in a small room with two other students. A few days ago, another student came in and asked where he could put his bed.
“There were no questions about consent, no documents, and no explanations,” he said.
It was reported earlier that one of KFU’s dormitories had been asked to free up 500 places for the duration of the Russia-ASEAN forum. Because of this, thesis and term paper defenses, as well as exams, were moved online. The rooms had to be vacated by June 1.
According to Ostorozhno, Novosti, about 4,000 people are now being moved out of the residential dormitory buildings. All of those displaced are being placed in other students’ rooms where possible. University representatives said the decision to increase room occupancy was made by the KFU administration and would remain in effect throughout June. At the same time, the official document says the buildings are being closed for repairs.
The rights organization Irek said it had collected more than 100 signatures on a collective complaint to the Tatarstan prosecutor’s office against the eviction of students from the dormitory. According to the group, police dispersed volunteers collecting signatures today.
The buildings are being cleared for guests of the international business forum Russia-ASEAN, scheduled for June 17–19. Heads of state and government from countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, are expected to attend the summit, and a speech by Vladimir Putin is also possible. The report notes that moving KFU students out of dormitories to house international guests is not new: the same happened in 2024.