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Former Belarussian presidential candidate Alexander Milinkevich has said he intends to spend the prize money given to him as part of the Sakharov Prize in support of political prisoners.

Milinkevich was awarded the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought Tuesday December 12, 2006 in Strasbourg. The prize is named after Andrei Sakharov, one of the best known former Soviet dissidents.

It is awarded by the EU assembly annually to a person or group judged to have made a particular achievement in the field of human rights, defense of international cooperation or promotion of democracy and the rule of law.

Milinkevich ran unsuccessfully against authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko in elections in March and became the symbol of Belarus’ persecuted opposition.

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