Western countries have stepped up pressure on Russia, blaming its leader and government for the death of leading Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in an Arctic prison under unclear circumstances.
Alexei Navalny died on Friday after spending three years in prison. Before his arrest, he was poisoned, which he blamed on the Kremlin. Navalny's death has stripped the Russian opposition of its most recognizable figure just months before a presidential election that is likely to reassert Vladimir Putin's power.
The West has blamed Putin and his government for the death of the 47-year-old dissident, whose health had deteriorated due to harsh detention conditions.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Navalny's "heroic opposition to Putin's oppressive and unjust regime has inspired the world." "We hold the Russian government solely responsible for his treatment and death in prison," Wong said.
US President Joe Biden snapped: "Make no mistake, Putin is responsible for Navalny's death." Russian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov added: "Alexei Navalny was tortured and tortured for three years...Murder was added to Alexei Navalny's sentence."
The death was announced by Russia's Federal Prison Service, which said Navalny "felt ill after a walk, almost immediately lost consciousness." Russian news agencies reported that medics from a local hospital arrived within minutes and spent more than "half an hour" trying to resuscitate him. Wife Yulia Navalnaya holds Putin personally responsible and called on the international community to "unite and defeat this evil, horrific regime."
Navalny was Russia's most prominent opposition leader and gained a huge following while campaigning against Putin's corruption.
Putin himself, who never mentioned Navalny by name, was visiting the Urals and made no mention of the death. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Western leaders of "absolutely unacceptable" and "hysterical" reactions to Navalny's death. Moscow authorities also warned the public against taking part in any protests after videos shared online showed dozens of Russians who lay flowers at monuments to victims of political repression in various Russian cities. The Russian human rights group OVD-Info reported that police detained more than 100 people gathered at spontaneous memorials to Navalny across the country. As of February 17, "more than 101 people have already been were detained in 10 cities," including 11 in the capital Moscow, OVD-Info reported on its website.
Brutally killed
Leonid Solovyov, one of Navalny's lawyers, told the Novaya Gazeta newspaper that he appeared "normal" when another lawyer saw him on Wednesday. In court footage, Navalny was seen smiling and joking as he addressed the judge via video link. State media reported that he had no health complaints during the court hearing, which took place on Thursday.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference hours after news of her husband's death, Yulia Navalna said Putin and his entourage "will be punished for everything they did to our country, to my family and to my husband."
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz emphasized that Navalny "paid with his life for his courage." Britain's Foreign Office said it had summoned the Russian ambassador "to make it clear that we hold the Russian authorities fully responsible" for Navalny's death. French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourn said his death "reminds us of the reality of Putin's regime," and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared Navalny "killed by Putin." UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a "full, credible and transparent investigation".
Russia's Foreign Ministry hit back, saying the way Western leaders blamed Russia for his death showed their hypocrisy. "There is still no forensic examination, but the West already has ready conclusions," spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
"I'm not afraid"
Navalny, who has led street protests for more than a decade, has become a household name through his anti-corruption campaign. His exposés of official corruption, posted on his YouTube channel, have garnered millions of views and brought tens of thousands of Russians to the streets, despite tough anti-protest laws. He was arrested in early 2021 after returning to Russia from Germany, where he was recovering from a near-fatal poisoning attack with Novichok, a Soviet-era nerve agent. In a series of trials, he was sentenced to 19 years in prison on charges that were widely condemned by human rights groups and in the West as retaliation for his opposition to the Kremlin. His return to Russia, although he knew he would be thrown behind bars, brought him admiration. "I am not afraid and I urge you not to be afraid," he said in an appeal to his supporters as he landed in Moscow, moments before he was taken into custody on charges related to an old fraud conviction. His arrest in 2021 sparked some of the biggest demonstrations Russia has seen in decades, and thousands were detained at rallies across the country calling for his release.
Behind bars, he was a staunch opponent of Moscow's full-scale military offensive against Ukraine and watched helplessly as the Kremlin dismantled his organization and imprisoned his allies. Dozens of his supporters fled into exile and continued the campaign against the offensive in Ukraine and repression in Russia.
"Do not give up"
Late last year, Navalny was moved to a remote Arctic prison in the Yamalo-Nenets region, which is located in northern Siberia. In January, he said his daily routine included prison walks in sub-zero temperatures. Since he was arrested in 2021, he has spent more than 300 days in solitary confinement, where prison authorities have held him for alleged minor violations of prison rules. The last post on Navalny's Telegram channel, which he runs through his lawyers and team in exile, was a tribute to his wife posted on Valentine's Day. In a documentary filmed before he returned to Russia, Navalny was asked what message he wanted to leave the Russian people if he died or was killed. "Do not give up. You must not, you cannot surrender,' he said. "All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." So don't do that." /BGNES, AFP
