DAY 13 OF PUSHA'S HUNGER STRIKE

Voina member and human rights activist Pusha (Philip Kostenko) has been on hunger strike since his arrest on December 6, 2011. Activist Victor Demynanenko, also wrongfully arrested, has joined Pusha in his hunger

strike. Their demand is to release all activists jailed as a result of the December 4-6 protest rallies.

Pusha was arrested near Gostiny Dvor in St. Petersburg during a peaceful rally against electoral fraud. He was charged under Article 19.3 (non-compliance with police orders). The case was heard by judge Alexei Kuznetsov, who is notorious among the opposition for accepting false police statements and for handing down harsh punishments.

Pusha is currently also facing criminal charges under Articles 214 (vandalism), 318 (using violence against a public official), 319 (insulting a public official).

Pusha (Philip Kostenko) is an activist, artist and organizer/participant in numerous protest actions. He is a member of the human rights organization Memorial and is active in the Food Not Bombs movement. Philip, who is an orphan, has faced regular harrassment from the law enforcement because of his protest activity. In 2011 alone, he

was subject to 8 unlawful arrests. Philip was recently forced to abandon his home in St. Petersburg due to repeated searches and physical threats from the police.

Voina calls on everyone to help support Philip Kostenko by spreading this information.

Links:

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[1] http://fotki.yandex.ru/users/riotstarter2011/tags/%D1%84%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BF%D0%BF%20%D0%BA%D0%BE%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%BA%D0%BE/

[2] http://fotki.yandex.ru/users/riotstarter2011/view/466710/?page=5