Serbian opposition leader ends hunger strike

Apr 21, 2011, 13:53 GMT

Belgrade - Serbian opposition leader Tomislav Nikolic ended a hunger strike Thursday, five days after he stopped eating and drinking in his campaign for snap parliamentary elections.

Nikolic, 59, was suffering severe dehydration and risked serious health problems, according to doctors at the private clinic where he was being monitored since Sunday.

The head of the Serbian Progressive Party, Nikolic had gone on a hunger strike in the apparent expectation his action would gain widespread sympathy and would put pressure on President Boris Tadic's ruling coalition.

Tadic visited Nikolic on Sunday and asked him to end his protest. The president refused to consider early elections, saying that the poll should take place after Serbia gains status as a European Union membership candidate, possibly in October.

Instead of support, Nikolic drew widespread criticism - from the EU and from the Serbian Orthodox church, which branded his hunger strike as 'un-Christian.'

Nikolic himself put his action into a Christian context, ending his strike just as Lent, the period of fasting before Easter, comes to a close.

Read more about Serbia Politics