Russian activists rally in support for Khodorkovsky

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian opposition activists rallied in central Moscow on Wednesday to support jailed tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky's hunger strike against prison authorities' treatment of his business partner.
Waving banners reading "Boys, we are with you!" and "No to tyrants!", up to 150 activists gathered in front of the Sailor's Rest prison where he and Platon Lebedev -- a fellow former executive at the YUKOS oil company -- are being held.

Both men have been sentenced to nine years in jail on charges of fraud and tax evasion. Khodorkovsky's supporters say he is the victim of a Kremlin-inspired campaign to punish him for his political ambitions and strip him of his assets.

"The whole situation is the result of Khodorkovsky's political activities that he didn't stop even while being behind the bars," Garry Kasparov, a former chess champion who now heads a radical opposition movement, said at the rally.

Uniformed police officers closely watched the peaceful crowd, dotted by enlarged pictures of a smiling Khodorkovsky and colourful hand-made posters.

Khodorkovsky, 42, has been refusing food and water since August19 out of solidarity with Lebedev who had been moved to solitary confinement.

In jail since late 2003, Khodorkovsky has written a number of articles and statements accusing the Kremlin of quashing Russian democracy, and even said he might run for parliament.

"The Kremlin does not stop demonstrating its resolution to punish anyone who is raising his voice against (President Vladimir) Putin's authoritarian rule..." Kasparov said.

"Any crowd, even a small one... is a chance to demonstrate that civil society in Russia is not yet dead."

(Reuters, 8.24.2005)