Prague, March 9 (CTK) – A total of 91 Czech deputies have added their signatures to an appeal to Russia to immediately release Ukrainian pilot Nadyia Savchenko from prison, initiated by the opposition TOP 09 party, which has been handed over to the Russian embassy in Prague, TOP 09’s spokeswoman told CTK yesterday.
TOP 09 chairman Miroslav Kalousek started collecting MPs’ signatures on Tuesday after he failed to push through the proposal that the Chamber of Deputies support the letter of Polish and Ukrainian intellectuals, in which they ask EU leaders to promote Savchenko’s release.
The inclusion of the proposal in the Chamber of Deputies’ agenda was vetoed by the Communists (KSCM), the strongest opposition party which is the third strongest in the Chamber.
TOP 09’s spokeswoman, Martina Mackova, said signatures to the appeal have been added by 91 members of the lower house, which has a total of 200 members, but several dozen were absent from the session on Tuesday.
Russian authorities have charged Savchenko with murder, attempted murder and illegal crossing of the Russian border.
The prosecution blames her for the death of two Russian journalists and demands a 23-year prison sentence for her.
Savchenko pleads not guilty.
Her acquittal has been demanded by Kiev and the West.
Savchenko went on hunger strike in protest against her imprisonment last week. Her health condition has been reportedly deteriorating rapidly.
Czech Deputy Prime Minister and Christian Democrat (KDU-CSL) head Pavel Belobradek on Tuesday said he would write a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin to protest against the violation of human rights and international law by Russia.
