Pasko's conditions of detention were harsh. From December 2001 to September 2002, he was held in the Vladivostok detention centre in an cold, isolated cell with no light or electricity, where he fell ill. On 10 September, he was transferred to a prison camp where he worked in a carpentry workshop. He continued to write clandestinely for Ekologiya i pravo and helped fellow inmates prepare their legal defence. His wife was allowed to telephone him and visit him only once every three months.

Pasko was one of some 116 journalists currently imprisoned worldwide just for wanting to practise their profession. He was sponsored by many international news organisations under the programme begun by Reporters Without Borders. They include M6, LCI, Le Nouvel Observateur, France Soir, RFI, Radio Classique, France Culture, Phosphore, Le Télégramme de Brest et de l'Ouest, Le Club de la Presse du Limousin, Essex Chronicle, Le Courrier, RTBF - Fréquence Wallonie and the Maison de la Presse of Mons. His wife Galina Morozova received the Reporters Without Borders - France Foundation award on his behalf on 10 December. The award was supported by the EDF Foundation.