Oleg Sentsov won the Sakharov prize. Here are his most inspiring quotes
Sentsov was arrested by the Russian FSB on 11 May 2014, shortly after the Russian occupation of Crimea. Together with three other Ukrainians, Oleksandr Kolchenko, Henadiy Afanasiev, and Oleksiy Chirniy he was illegally transferred to Russia and is being charged in “plotting terrorist acts.” These charges are entirely based on testimonies of Chirniy and Afanasiev, both of whom have stated that they were tortured by the FSB. On 31 July 2015, Afanasiev retracted his testimony, leaving the accusation in shatters, but the four activists were still sentenced to long terms in prison; of them, Sentsov was punished most heavily, having been sentenced to 20 years. Over the more than four years of his imprisonment, he has remained unbroken and had for 145 days held a hunger strike, demanding to release the circa 70 Ukrainian political prisoners of the Kremlin, who, like him, are imprisoned by Russia without a crime.
Sentsov was chosen from a shortlist of three by the Parliament’s political group leaders on 25 October.
Announcing this year’s laureate, Parliament President AntonioTajani said:
“Through his courage and determination, by putting his life in danger, the filmmaker Oleg Sentsov has become a symbol of the struggle for the release of political prisoners held in Russia and around the world. By awarding him the Sakharov Prize, the European Parliament is expressing its solidarity with him and his cause. We ask that he be released immediately. His struggle reminds us that it is our duty to defend human rights everywhere in the world and in all circumstances.”
Here are are some of Sentsov’s most impassioned words:
On Russian court’s attempt to consider him a Russian citizen:
From his latest speech at trial in Rostov-on-Don on 19 August 2015:
On Afanasiev, the witness who retracted his testimony as given under torture:
On Russian propaganda channels:
The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, named in honor of the Soviet physicist and political dissident Andrei Sakharov, has been awarded annually since 1988 to individuals and organizations defending human rights and fundamental freedoms. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the prize. The prize, consisting of consisting of a certificate and €50,000 will be awarded during a ceremony in the Parliament in Strasbourg on 12 December. Sentsov was among three finalists for the 2018 Sakharov Prize. The other two are the NGOs protecting human rights and saving migrant lives across the Mediterranean Sea and Nasser Zefzafi, the leader of Hirak, a mass protest movement in the Rif region in Morocco.
Source: Euromaidan Press
Read more:
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- On hunger strike since May, Oleg Sentsov is ready to die in protest against Putin’s imperialism
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- Russia sends photos of imprisoned Ukrainian filmmaker on 88th day of his hunger strike
- “The Trial,” documentary about Oleg Sentsov, opened for free international screenings
- EU parliament calls to release Sentsov and all Ukrainian political prisoners of the Kremlin
- World intellectuals implore politicians to boycott World Cup until Russia frees Ukrainian political prisoners
- From Crimea to Siberia: the prisons where Russia holds hunger-striking political prisoners Sentsov&Kolchenko
- The Sentsov-Kolchenko case: what you need to know
- Ukrainian filmmaker on 87th day of hunger strike in Russian prison writes that “end is near”
