- Navalny death sparks global outcry
- Over 100 detained at memorials
- Russia intensifies crackdown on dissent
More than one hundred individuals have been apprehended by Russian police at memorials and rallies in honour of opposition leader Alexey Navalny, whom the government claims was executed in a remote penal colony.
The OVD-Info protest monitoring organisation reported on Saturday that over 110 individuals had been detained, 64 of whom were in Saint Petersburg.
On Friday, after a walk at the “Polar Wolf” Arctic penal colony, where he was serving a 19-year sentence, the 47-year-old Navalny reportedly lost consciousness and died, according to the federal prison service. His death prompted an international outpouring of sorrow and astonishment among his supporters and condemnation from world leaders.
A number of urban areas witnessed impromptu memorials upon hearing the news of his demise; thirteen cities saw individuals being apprehended, according to OVD-Info, an organisation that monitors political repression in Russia.
It was further stated that eleven individuals were detained in Moscow, the capital, and that Nizhny Novgorod, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don, and Tver detained several others.
Memorials Removed Amid Protests
The majority of the hundreds of candles and flowers that were placed in Moscow on Friday in remembrance of Navalny, a prominent critic of Vladimir Putin, were removed overnight in black sacks. On Saturday morning, a limited number of roses and carnations were visible amidst the snow at the monument honouring the victims of Soviet repression, situated in the vicinity of the former KGB headquarters on Lubyanka Square in central Moscow, which casts a shadow.
Viral photographs and videos on Russian social media also depicted the removal of flowers from memorials to victims of repression during the Soviet era throughout the nation.
Protests are prohibited in Russia in accordance with stringent anti-dissent legislation, and the government has intensified its crackdown on rallies that express support for Navalny.
On Friday, authorities in the capital city of Moscow issued a statement acknowledging online appeals “to participate in a mass rally in the heart of Moscow” and advised individuals against attending.
Overnight, flowers were also removed from a bridge adjacent to the Kremlin where opposition leader and former prime minister Boris Nemtsov was fatally shot on February 27, 2015.
A miniature printed sheet of paper and a rudimentary vase adorned with red and white carnations persisted. The note stated, “Boris Nemtsov was shot in the back and murdered here.”
Multiple individuals were detained at a memorial in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk and another in Surgut on Saturday, according to police, as reported by OVD-Info.
Social media users from Novosibirsk posted footage of individuals placing red flowers in the snow while police used tape to block access to the memorial.
Relations between Putin and the West
Alexey Muraviev, a professor of strategic studies at Curtin University, predicts that the outcome of the presidential election, which will almost certainly hand Putin another six years in office, will be unaffected by the demise of Navalny, which occurred less than a month prior to the contest.
Navalny lacked substantial political influence within the Russian context. “His army of supporters comprised a negligible portion of the Russian conservative electorate as a whole, and they continue to be so,” Muraviev said.
Conversely, this could impede the Russian president’s efforts to reestablish a dialogue with the West, according to Muraviev, given the renewed attention paid to his repressive regime.
President Joe Biden of the United States stated that Navalny “brazenly opposed the violence, corruption, and other nefarious activities of the Putin regime” and added, “Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death.”
President Charles Michel of the European Council stated that the dissident Russian national “fought for the values of freedom and democracy” and “suffered the ultimate sacrifice.”
“The European Union holds the Russian regime solely accountable for this tragic loss of life,” he stated.
Global Reaction to Navalny’s Death
Penny Wong, the foreign minister of Australia, stated on Saturday that Navalny’s “heroic resistance against Putin’s repressive and unjust regime galvanised the entire world.”
“We hold the Russian Government solely liable for his treatment and death in prison,” Wong wrote on X.
“Absolutely unacceptable” and “hysterical” are the terms used by the Kremlin to describe the reactions of Western leaders to Navalny’s death, although it has not commented.
According to the AFP news agency, China’s foreign ministry declined to comment on Saturday, characterising the situation as “Russia’s internal affair.”
Navalny had been incarcerated since January 2021, when, after recuperating in Germany from nerve agent poisoning that he attributed to the Kremlin, he returned to Moscow to face certain detention. Subsequently, he was found guilty three times, with each conviction being attributed to political motivations, and was given a 19-year sentence for extremism.
Navalny stated that he comprehended he was “serving a life sentence, which is measured by the length of my life or the length of life of this regime” following his most recent verdict.
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Navalny’s wife, Yulia Navalnaya, delivered a speech at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, where a large number of world leaders had congregated, hours after the news of his death broke.
“Should this be accurate, I would like Putin and his aides, as well as his government, to know that they will be held accountable for the harm they inflicted upon our nation, my family, and my spouse.” “At that moment, this day will arrive,” she predicted.
His attorney accompanied Navalny’s mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, to the prison colony where he passed away, according to a Saturday report in the Novaya Gazeta.
