August 8 also brought news about the dire situation of Oleh Sentsov. It was the 87th day of his hunger strike and his cousin Natalya Kaplan wrote on Facebook: “Things aren’t just bad, they’re catastrophically bad.” She added, “He wrote that the end is near – and he wasn’t talking about his release.”
Mr. Sentsov began his hunger strike back on May 14 to demand the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners held by Russia. He vowed to strike until all were released, even if for him that meant death. On August 7, his lawyer Dmitry Dinze said Mr. Sentsov is very weak, has lost 30 kilograms (66 pounds), has low hemoglobin levels and is suffering from heart problems.
On August 2, Amnesty International had been denied access to the Ukrainian political prisoner who is serving a 20-year sentence on trumped-up charges of terrorism. Oksana Pokalchuk, Amnesty International’s Ukraine director, stated, “Denying us the right to visit Oleh Sentsov is indefensible. …there are grave concerns for his health. We were planning to visit Oleh accompanied by an independent medical expert who would be able to evaluate his health.” Ukraine’s ombudswoman Lyudmyla Denisova also has been denied access to Mr. Sentsov. On August 8 she stated that she is ready to discuss any conditions for a prisoner exchange with the Russian Federation “just for the sake of saving Sentsov’s life.”
The next day, Ms. Denisova reported that her Russian counterpart, Tatyana Moskalkova, told her there are technical problems as Mr. Sentsov, a native of Crimea, is a Russian citizen, in accordance with Russian law, and it’s not possible to exchange a Russian citizen for a Russian citizen. True depravity! Russia occupies Crimea, declares Ukrainian citizens living there to be Russian citizens, and then this… Russia’s behavior has once again proven to be reprehensible.
Significantly, back on June 15, 38 countries had asked U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres to raise the cases of Mr. Sentsov and dozens of other Ukrainian prisoners with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The U.S. State Department has spoken out for Mr. Sentsov on more than one occasion. And still he remains a prisoner of Russia.
On August 8, Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Maryana Betsa tweeted, “Sentsov’s health rapidly deteriorates,” urging Ukraine’s partners to “exert more pressure on Russia” to release him. Will the world’s powers save Oleh Sentsov?