A lawyer for Ukraine's jailed former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Wednesday said he may sue a news agency over publication of a video alleging he had an affair with his defendant.
The three-minute-long black and white video, available on YouTube, features a woman resembling Tymoshenko who is soon joined by a man resembling her lawyer, Serhiy Vlasenko. The woman begins kissing and cuddling with her visitor. The video has very low resolution; the features of the people could not be identified.
“I’ll study this video," Vlasenko told Kommersant-Ukraina daily. "Most likely, I will [sue the news agency].”
Vlasenko categorically denied having an affair with Tymoshenko.
Tymoshenko’s party on Tuesday called the video “fake and bogus,” while the State Penitentiary Service’s first deputy head, Serhiy Sydorenko, described it as “truthful.” A probe may be initiated to establish how the news agency obtained the video, he said.
The Ukrainian opposition leader has been jailed for seven years for abusing her power by pushing through a 2009 gas deal with Russia. She is serving her term in a penal colony in the eastern city of Kharkov. She has maintained her innocence.
On Tuesday, Tymoshenko, who suffers from spinal problems, started a hunger strike after prison guards allegedly beat her in the stomach while taking her to hospital by force.
Vlasenko said the publication of the video aimed to distract society from this incident.
After visiting Tymoshenko in jail, Ukrainian human rights ombudswoman Nina Karpachyova confirmed on Wednesday that she had bruises on her arm, right elbow and the right part of her abdomen, according to opposition politician Arseniy Yatsenyuk.
Sydorenko, however, insisted on Wednesday that “no beating has taken place.” The Penitentiary Service said Tymoshenko refused on Tuesday to be inspected by a medical expert, a claim dismissed by her lawyer.
正在服刑的乌克兰前总理尤利亚•季莫申科的律师称，他将起诉一家新闻机构，该机构发布的视频称他与季莫申科有私情。
这段3分钟长的黑白视频显示，酷似季莫申科律师谢尔盖•瓦拉森科的男子很快进来探望一个很像季莫申科的女人。两人开始接吻，拥抱在一起。视频非常模糊，无法辨认出里面人物的身份特征。这段视频被上传到YouTube网站上。
瓦拉森科告诉《乌克兰商业日报》说：“我会仔细研究这段视频，很可能会起诉这家新闻机构。”
瓦拉森科断然否认与季莫申科有私情。
季莫申科所在的政党本周二称这段视频是“虚假的，伪造的”。但乌克兰监狱局副局长谢尔盖•塞多兰科称其是“真实的”。他说，有关机构将着手调查新闻机构是如何获得这段视频的。
乌克兰反对党季莫申科因2009年支持乌克兰与俄罗斯签署天然气协议，被控滥用职权获刑7年。她正在乌克兰东部城市哈尔科夫一座监狱服刑。她一直坚称自己无罪。
本周二，季莫申科宣称遭到狱警殴打，开始绝食抗议。她的脊柱患病，称在狱警强迫她去一家医院就医时打了她的胃部一拳。
瓦拉森科称，这段视频的目的在于分散人们对季莫申科遭打和抗议事件的注意力。
反对党政治人士阿尔谢尼•亚采纽克表示，乌克兰人权女调查官尼娜-卡帕奇耶娃在前往监狱探望季莫申科后，本周三确认称，她的手臂、右肘和腹部右半部有瘀伤。
但塞多兰科本周三坚称“从没有打过季莫申科”。乌克兰监狱局表示季莫申科本周二拒绝了医疗导师的检查，但她的律师反驳了这种说法。

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