Ukrainian filmmaker Sentsov enters day 100 of hunger strike
AFP / Genya SAVILOVUkrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov's cousin Natalia Kaplan at a demonstration in front of the Russian embassy in Kiev on Tuesday
Western governments and activists on Tuesday stepped up pressure on Russia to free jailed Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov as he reached day 100 of a hunger strike.
Ten protesters were also arrested by Russian police in Moscow on Tuesday in a demonstration to show support for Sentsov, according to the independent monitor OVD-Info.
The 42-year-old Kremlin opponent was arrested in Crimea after Moscow's 2014 annexation of the peninsula and has been languishing in a Russian Artic prison with little hope of release.
He announced the hunger strike in May demanding the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners being held in Russia.
Sentsov's cousin Natalia Kaplan was among several dozen people demonstrating in front of the Russian embassy in Kiev Tuesday.
Sentsov "does not intend to give up his strike, nor ask (Russian President Vladimir) Putin to pardon him," she told protesters, some of whom were carrying signs that read "Free Sentsov" and "Stop Putin".
"Oleg is hanging in there... He is not broken," she added.
AFP / Vincent LEFAIThe location of the penal colony where Ukrainian film director Oleg Sentsov has been on a hunger strike for 100 days
But in an interview with AFP last week, Kaplan painted a gloomy picture of her relative's health and state of mind.
"He wrote to me that we mustn't tell him any more that freedom is coming. He doesn't believe it any more," she said.
"He has a very weak heartbeat of 40 beats per minute. He complains that his heart hurts, that he's weak, and he tries to not get up too often to preserve his strength."
- 'Could die any minute' -
In the Czech Republic, filmmakers said they were launching a rotating hunger strike in solidarity with the director.
The French newspaper Le Monde carried a plea signed by dozens of figures from the world of culture calling for his release, saying "Oleg Sentsov could die any minute".
Ukrainian foreign ministry spokeswoman Mariana Betsa also demanded that Sentsov be freed.
"We call on our partners and international organisations to increase pressure on Russia to #SaveOlegSentsov and free Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia," she wrote on Twitter.
The father of two is receiving supplements in a drip usually meant for people who are unable to eat.
AFP/File / SERGEI VENYAVSKYUkrainian film director Oleg Sentsov announced his hunger strike in May
Russian rights ombudswoman Tatiana Moskalkova said doctors had found that Sentsov's condition was "satisfactory", adding "he moves, gets up, and gets a special diet".
She also said Sentsov could not be part of a prisoner-swap with Ukraine because he was automatically given Russian nationality when Crimea was annexed.
"We must look for a new legal way" for such an exchange, she said.
Vice Speaker of the Ukrainian parliament Iryna Gerashchenko called the statements a "farce" and "blackmail", saying the only thing needed to free Sentsov was "Putin's political will".
Sentsov was convicted of planning arson attacks on pro-Moscow party offices in Crimea after Russia annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014.
He had also taken part in the Maidan protests in Kiev during the winter of 2013-2014 that culminated in Moscow-backed president Viktor Yanukovych fleeing the country.
- 'Stalinist' trial -
Sentsov was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for terrorism and arms trafficking after a trial denounced as "Stalinist" by Amnesty International and criticised by Kiev, the EU and the US.
AFP / Genya SAVILOVA man holds a placard reading "Free Sentsov" during a rally in front of the Russian embassy in Kiev
British junior foreign minister Alan Duncan said Tuesday the charges against Sentsov had been "fabricated," adding: "No one should be imprisoned for opposing the illegal annexation of Crimea."
Journalist and activist Zoya Svetova said the prisoner told her during a visit last week he had lost 17 kilogrammes (38 pounds), while prison medics said he had lost 11.
Sentsov was working on his second film when he was arrested. His first film "Gamer" is about a young video game player, and was shown at several European festivals in 2012.
G7 ambassadors as well as major figures from the world of cinema, from director Jean-Luc Godard to Hollywood star Johnny Depp, have previously called for Sentsov's release.
The Kremlin has so far remained unresponsive to requests for him to be freed, saying that a request for a pardon can only be filed by the prisoner himself, which Sentsov has refused to do.
In a rare public intervention on the subject in early June, Putin showed little sympathy towards Sentsov's plight.
Sentsov was arrested because "he was planning a terrorist attack" rather than because of opposition or artistic activities, the Russian president said.
Actress Asia Argento denies sexual relationship with underage teen
AFP/File / LOIC VENANCEItalian actress Asia Argento became a powerful voice for the #MeToo movement after accusing Hollywood producer Weinstein of raping her when she was 21 in his hotel room in 1997 during the Cannes film festival
Italian actress and sexual abuse campaigner Asia Argento denied Tuesday having had a sexual relationship five years ago with an underage teen, calling the allegations part of "a long-standing persecution".
The New York Times reported on Sunday that Argento, 42, a Harvey Weinstein accuser and leading figure in the #MeToo movement, had paid actor and rock musician Jimmy Bennett $380,000 over the alleged 2013 incident at a Los Angeles hotel.
Bennett was two months past his 17th birthday at the time of the alleged encounter, while Argento was 37. The legal age of consent in California is 18. The pair are now 22 and 42 respectively.
"I strongly deny and oppose the contents of the New York Times article... as circulated also in national and international news," a statement issued by her agent said.
"I am deeply shocked and hurt by having read news that is absolutely false. I have never had any sexual relationship with Bennett," it goes on.
Argento says that she was linked to Bennett "during several years by friendship only".
The pair had acted together in the 2004 film "The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things", in which Argento plays Bennett's troubled mother.
Argento said the friendship "ended when, subsequent to my exposure in the Weinstein case, Bennett -- who was then undergoing severe economic problems and who had previously undertaken legal actions against his own family requesting millions in damages -- unexpectedly made an exorbitant request of money from me."
- 'Great sadness' -
Argento became a powerful voice for the #MeToo movement after accusing Hollywood producer Weinstein of raping her when she was 21 in his hotel room in 1997 during the Cannes film festival.
Argento goes on to say that her late boyfriend, the chef Anthony Bourdain, "was afraid of the possible negative publicity that such a person, whom he considered dangerous, could have brought upon us".
"We decided to deal compassionately with Bennett's demand for help and give it to him. Anthony personally undertook to help Bennett economically, upon the condition that we would no longer suffer any further intrusions in our life," the statement said.
"This is, therefore, the umpteenth development of a sequence of events that brings me great sadness and that constitutes a long-standing persecution," Argento said, before pledging to take "all necessary initiatives for my protection before all competent venues".
Bennett's legal action was launched a month after Argento's accusations against Weinstein were made public, according to the New York Times report, which added that his lawyer claimed his client recalled the hotel encounter after seeing Argento present herself as a victim of sexual assault.
Argento made an emotional speech at this year's Cannes festival, telling the audience: "Things have changed. We are not going to allow you to get away with it."
Weinstein's lawyer Ben Brafman has sought to capitalise on the allegations against Argento, accusing her of "duplicity" and "a stunning level of hypocrisy".
On Monday police in California said that Argento was not currently under active investigation over the Times report but that "enquiries will be made".
The reality singing television show "X Factor Italy" on which Argento is a judge has said it would cut ties with her if the allegation was confirmed.
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