KIEV, Ukraine.- An Olympic silver medalist, considered one of the best Belarusian athletes in history, went on a 10-day hunger strike to show support for the victims of political repression in his country.
Andrei Krauchanka, who is a decathlon medalist during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, also said on Friday that he will sell the gold medal he won at the 2011 European Indoor Championships, with the aim of helping the families of prisoners. politicians.
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During some months of the previous year, numerous protesters demanded the resignation of President Alexander Lukashenko, condemning his authoritarianism and considering the August elections fraudulent, in which he was reelected for a sixth term in office.
The police suppressed the protests, arrested more than 34,000 people and beat many of them. Krauchanka was among the protesters arrested and attacked.
“There are real people behind bars now. These are real lives, broken lives of their relatives, “Krauchanka said in a statement announcing his fast. “It is very difficult for me to understand this terrifying reality in Belarus.”
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