Pussy Riot hunger strike ends after 11 days
Opposition activists attend in Moscow on March 2, 2013 demanding the release of jailed members of the female punk band ‘Pussy Riot’ Maria Alyokhina (L) and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova
Jailed Pussy Riot member Maria Alyokhina has announced an end to her hunger strike after 11 days because the prison has met her demands, the husband of Alyokhina’s bandmate said Saturday.
“Maria said that the prison administration took her on a special tour of the colony, to show her that her demands have been met,” Pyotr Verzilov told Agence France-Presse.
He added that Alyokhina then “announced an end to her hunger strike.”
Alyokhina is serving a two-year sentence at an Ural Mountain penal colony for her band’s “punk-rock protest” against President Vladimir Putin last year inside a Moscow cathedral.
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She resorted to the hunger strike after what she called a “show trial” during her appeal process. A judge wouldn’t let her appear at the appeal in person, forcing her to use closed-circuit TV.
Alyokhina also complained that prison guards pitted her against her fellow inmates, The Associated Press said.
She said guards clamped down on their movements through the prison because of her, clearing out her entire wing, according to AP.
Earlier this week, Alyokhina was moved to a hospital because her hunger strike continued for about seven days, Reuters reported.
AFP contributed to this report.
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