KIEV: Ukraine’s top political talk show host was allowed to go back on air Thursday after he launched a hunger strike over being stripped of his work permit in what he called a politically-charged case.
Savik Shuster — a 63-year-old Canadian citizen who was born in the Soviet Union and had previously worked for the US-funded Radio Liberty station — had accused Kiev’s pro-Western leaders of being unwilling to support free speech.
He was told by Kiev’s employment office Tuesday that his Ukrainian work permit was being revoked because he had failed to notify registration authorities that he was the subject of a disputed tax evasion claim.
The decision sparked a political uproar in Kiev that prompted President Petro Poroshenko to step in and defend his record on media rights.
