BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

31/10/2006

Jailed Belarusian Activist Hospitalized

October 31, 2006 -- Jailed Belarusian opposition politician Alyaksandr Kazulin was hospitalized today.

The information was disclosed by the Western human rights group Charta 97, and confirmed by Prosecutor-General Pyotr Miklashevich.

Prison officials declined to comment.

Kazulin, a former university rector, began a hunger strike on October 20, saying it was intended to galvanize the country's fractured opposition.

He was one of two opposition figures who ran against President Alyaksandr Lukashenka in the March presidential elections.

Kazulin was sentenced in July to 5 1/2 years in prison for his role in organizing street rallies to denounce official results giving the president a landslide win.

The United States and European Union have denounced Lukashenka's reelection as rigged

(dpa, Reuters).

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2006/10/83bbcf64-fc85-4c0a-b9d2-d5c190e7400c.html