BRUSSELS – The European People’s Party, the biggest in the European Parliament, will nominate Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov, held as a political prisoner by Russia, for the European Parliament’s 2018 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.
The initiative to nominate Sentsov, who is on hunger strike in protest against the detention by the Kremlin of around 70 Ukrainian political prisoners, was put forward by two MEP’s from the group, Germany Michael Gahler and Slovakia’s Eduard Kukan.
“I’m happy that this initiative was supported by our political group,” Gahler told Kyiv Post after the group voted to nominate Sentsov.
“We want to pay tribute to (Sentsov’s) sacrifices for all prisoners who are illegally detained and kept in prison by the Russian authorities. We also want to reiterate our support for Ukrainian independence and sovereignty.”
The other eight political groups in the European Parliament could also nominate other candidates. The first discussion about all the nominated candidates will take a place on Oct. 9 during the meeting of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Development.
The committee members will then select a shortlist of three nominees. The final winner of the 2018 Sakharov Prize Laureate will be selected from among the candidates on the shortlist at the Conference of Presidents, held between the president of the European Parliament and the leaders of the political groups on Oct. 25.
The award ceremony will take place on Dec. 12 during a meeting of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
If Sentsov wins, he will be the first European Laureate for nine years, and the first Ukrainian to win the prize.
Sentsov has been on an indefinite hunger strike since May 14. Over the past 100 days, the 42-year-old film director is reported by his lawyer to have lost around 30 kilograms in weight. He has also reportedly developed problems with his kidneys and heart.
The European Union has repeatedly called on Russia to free Sentsov, who was jailed for 20 years after being subjected to a sham trial in a Kremlin-controlled court in 2015. Human rights groups declared the trial unfair after two key witnesses against Sentsov retracted their testimony, saying it had been given under duress.
Last year the democratic opposition in Venezuela was awarded the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize.
The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, named in honor of the Soviet physicist and political dissident Andrei Sakharov, is awarded every year by the European Parliament. It was established in 1988 to honor individuals and organizations defending human rights and fundamental freedoms.
