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Hunger striker protests pot prison penalty

The Local Austria
The Local Austria - [email protected]
Hunger striker protests pot prison penalty
File photo: APA

Georg Huß, a 42-year-old man sentenced to four years in prison for possession of only 750 grammes (26 ounces) of cannabis, has been on a hunger strike since June 23rd in protest against the severity of his punishment.

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Huß is currently housed in Eisenstadt jail. He received a four year sentence for possession of a relatively small amount of cannabis, according to a report in the daily tabloid Heute.

Described as a "hippie type", Huß has refused to eat anything for the past three weeks, and is drinking only tea, while under medical observation.

"I drink only green tea, and will eventually collapse," he said. His protest is to highlight what he sees as a disproportionate sentence and lack of fairness in his trial.


Cannabis plants. Photo: Petr Brož/Wikimedia

He told the Kurier newspaper: "I've been smoking marijuana since I was 15 years old, but I won't confess to something I didn't do."

He was accused of growing 181 cannabis plants in southern Burgenland, and had already harvested 100 plants with a total viable weight of one kg. As a result of this cultivation, he received the four year sentence.

He's protesting not only against the severity of his punishment, but also the harsh prison conditions. While pre-trial detention was no picnic, he says that life in Eisenstadt prison "is particularly hard."

He complained that he is forced to sit 23 hours a day in solitary confinement, there is no library, no opportunity to develop, "simply nothing."

He refuses to quit the hunger strike, saying "they will have to take me to hospital before I back down."

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