A court in Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine, has rejected an appeal from the jailed former Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko for an easing of her prison conditions.<br /><br />She is currently in a prison hospital and had wanted to be transferred to a rehabilitation centre for treatment for her chronic back condition. She has the right to appeal against the decision.<br /><br />Tymoshenko also wants the use of a mobile phone and be allowed to take walks outside the prison walls.<br /><br />Currently Tymoshenko is under criminal investigation for 10 alleged criminal acts; Ukrainian prosecutors have claimed Tymoshenko committed even more criminal acts beyond the abuse of power charges she was found guilty of in October 2011.<br /><br />Her jailing has been condemned internationally as “selective justice” and “political persecution”.
