Photo: BBC
On August 3rd, the The Guardian published the text of an open letter from the US- French writer Jonathan Littell to Ukrainian director, political prisoner Oleg Sentsov, who continues his hunger strike in Russian colony.
«Oleg Sentsov is hungry for 82 days (as of August 3rd – Ed.). I and many others are on his side. This is an open letter to the Ukrainian director, unfairly jailed by Putin. To save his life, his situation should be known», Littell explained in the foreword to the letter.
«Dear Oleg Gennadyevich Sentsov, you must feel very lonely, way out in the Labytnangi penal colony, the northernmost one in Russia, so far from Ukraine and from your loved ones. I am writing to you – without knowing if this letter will ever reach you – to let you know that, in thought at least, you are not alone: throughout the world a great many people – filmmakers like you, writers, journalists, activists and simple citizens – are thinking of you, supporting you, and wishing with all their hearts soon to see you free», the letter says.
According to the writer, the Russian regime understands only the strength and balance of power:
«This is something you have fully comprehended, and for me this explains your gesture, your decision to cease feeding yourself: it is a way to alter the balance of power, to shift it in your favor and possibly turn it against your persecutors», he concretized.
«All I can tell you, as we wait for your freedom, is this: your struggle is not in vain. Your protests against the illegal annexation of your homeland, against Russia’s flagrant violation of international law, against its regime’s obscene violence and repression, and its flood of lies, propaganda and disinformation, hold a great deal of meaning. This holds true far beyond the Arctic Circle where you languish behind bars; far beyond even Moscow and St Petersburg where so many naive tourists, coming from Britain and from all over the world for football and cheap beer, partied for weeks without even knowing your name.
It is not just for your friends, for Ukraine and the Ukrainians that you are struggling, but for these strangers too, for their right to live in a world free of Russian aggression and manipulations. Many of us understand this clearly, and in whatever feeble manner we can, we are at your side», the letter says.
Among other things, writer expressed his sincere admiration for Sentsov’s courage and clear conscience.
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