Tymoshenko supporters, opponents rally as trial delayed again
By
our dpa-correspondent and Europe Online
Kyiv (dpa) – Hundreds of supporters and opponents of Ukraine‘s
imprisoned ex-premier Yulia Tymoshenko held rallies in the eastern
city of Kharkiv on Tuesday, while a judge ordered a new delay in her
trial for tax evasion.
Tymoshenko‘s refusal to appear at a hearing on charges she
concealed millions of dollars of income from tax inspectors while she
headed a natural gas corporation during the 1990s made the Tuesday
hearing impossible, said Kharkiv city district court judge Konstantyn
Sadovsky.
The trial would convene again on October 15, he ordered.
Tymoshenko has, including her Tuesday non-appearance, refused eight
times to show up in court to answer the charges against her.
Two rallies with some 1,000 participants each took place outside
the court building, one in support of Tymoshenko and one calling for
her prosecution, the Unian news agency reported.
Opposition leader Tymoshenko is already serving a seven-year
sentence for abuse of office. The conviction is connected to a
natural gas deal signed with Russia while she headed Ukraine‘s
government in 2009.
Participants in the pro-Tymoshenko rally held up banners saying
“Freedom for Yulia!” and “Batkyvshchina,” the name of the political
party she heads.
Tymoshenko opponents held up signs saying, among others, “Where‘s
the money?” and “Return everything from the offshore accounts!”
A police line separated the two demonstrations.
The trial is hearing charges Tymoshenko concealed some 4 million
dollars in corporate earnings and personally evaded paying 80,000
dollars in taxes.
Tymoshenko has denied all wrongdoing and said she believes herself
to be the victim of a vendetta pursued by her political opponent,
President Viktor Yanukovych.
Yanukovych has said he wishes Tymoshenko well but that he supports
the rule of law.
The former premier‘s imprisonment has been widely criticized in
the West as politically motivated.
Tymoshenko is being held in a women‘s prison in Kharkiv. She has
said she suffers from poor health because of her imprisonment and
poor treatment by guards. Prison officials have rejected the claims.
dpa sbk hl
Author: Stefan Korshak
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