Himara-born former athlete Pirro Dhima, considered as one of the greatest weightlifters of all time in Greece, declared his support for Fredi Beleri, who was arrested a few days ago under the accusation of vote buying.

Through a Twitter post, Dhima encourages Beleri to keep his head high.

“Some of us had the heavy and dark fate of growing up in fear of the consequences of free speech and under the constant violation of our rights. Today, we refuse to bow our heads to behaviors that hurt democracy and the rule of law,” writes Dhima.

Besides sports, Dhima has been active in the Greek politics scene. He was a member of the Hellenic Parliament, representing the Panhellenic Socialist Movement from 2012 to 2015.

Dhima has also campaigned for the rights of ethnic Greeks in Albania, drawing attention to alleged human rights abuses against the community in Himara.