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Ukraine’s Health Ministry concerned over campaign around Timoshenko

The Health Ministry insists that all necessary conditions for keeping Timoshenko’s health should be created in the Kachanovskaya penal colony

Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

KIEV, April 26 (Itar-Tass) — Ukraine’s Health Ministry has expressed concern over an information campaign around medical treatment of former prime minister Yulia Timoshenko, who is serving a seven year prison sentence for abuse of office during gas negotiations with Russia.

“This information campaign discredits Ukraine’s medicine and dishonors domestic specialists,” the press service said.

The Health Ministry insists that all necessary conditions for keeping Timoshenko’s health should be created in the Kachanovskaya penal colony in Kharkov, eastern Ukraine.

“Doctors of Ukrzheldoroga’s central clinic (of the railway transport administration) are ready to provide all necessary assistance in compliance with the commission’s recommendations, including its international component. Along with this further politicization of this situation and an attempt to use the convict’s health for resolving self-seeking political goals of some political forces discredit Ukraine’s medicine,” the ministry said in a statement.

The press service noted that if the parliament’s human rights commissioner Nina Karpacheva has opportunities for attracting foreign specialists, the Health Ministry asks to speed up these efforts. Along with this the ministry underlined that Ukraine’s experts are ready to provide all necessary medical services at any time.

On Wednesday Karpacheva visited Yulia Timoshenko at the Kachanovskaya penal colony after the information on beating of the ex-prime minister by prison guards emerged. The human rights commissioner confirmed that Timoshenko had bodily injuries.

“She had bruises on the right side of her stomach and on the left hand – shoulder and elbow area. Timoshenko told me about the details of beating. These details are awful,” she told reporters after her visit.

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