18:20 03.08.2018

Ukrainian activist Kostenko freed in Russia after end of prison term expected in Ukraine soon

2 min read

First Deputy Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament and Ukraine's envoy to the Trilateral Contact Group's humanitarian subgroup Iryna Gerashchenko hopes Oleksandr Kostenko, a Ukrainian citizen released on August 3 from a Russian prison in Kirov region, will soon return to Ukraine, where he will receive temporary housing.

"I hope he'll get across the Ukrainian-Russian border without adventures and will soon be in Ukraine. Ukraine's president was informed this morning about his release and that he has nowhere to stay in Kyiv. He should be given government assistance," Gerashchenko said on her Facebook page.

Crimean activist Kostenko served his sentence in a penal colony in Kirovo-Chepetsk, Kirov region, Russia.

Gerashchenko said she, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry and Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmila Denisova had prepared for Kostenko's release and hoped there would be no surprises. According to her, Kostenko was met upon release by Ukrainian diplomats.

Denisova said on her Facebook page that she informed Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko that Kostenko would need a place to live. They found a two-room flat for Kostenko, where he may stay for 6-12 months, she said. He will also be granted internally displaced person's status and all related benefits.

She noted that Kostenko's family remains in Crimea, which is under Russian military occupation.

"We tried to contact Olena Kostenko - Oleksandr's mother, but her phone was turned off … It's no secret that the phones [there] are being tapped," Denisova said.

Kostenko in February 2015 was kidnapped at the door of his house in Crimea and taken to an unknown destination. He was later accused of attacking a Berkut riot police officer during anti-government protests in Kyiv, as well as illegal possession of weapons. Kostenko was sentenced to and served a four-year prison term in Russia.

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