Another 19 years in prison for Putin’s awesomely brave critic
A RUSSIAN opposition leader was jailed for 19 more years yesterday on ‘trumped-up’ charges.
Alexei Navalny, who is Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic, was already serving 11 years for alleged parole violations, fraud and contempt of court.
Before being jailed he had campaigned against corruption and – with millions of social media followers – was a hugely influential voice against the Kremlin.
He and his supporters in Russia and around the world say the new court convictions for supposed extremism are politically motivated and intended as a message to opponents of Putin.
Mr Navalny survived an assassination attempt involving the nerve agent novichok in 2020. He was in Siberia at the time and flew to Germany for treatment.
Against the advice of his supporters he returned to Russia and was immediately detained, triggering unauthorised rallies that led to thousands of protesters being arrested.
Mr Navalny has accused Putin of running a government full of ‘crooks and thieves’ and turning Russia into a ‘feudal state’.
Yesterday’s court hearing took place at a penal colony in Melekhovo, 150 miles east of Moscow.
Video footage from the courtroom showed Mr Navalny standing in the dock in prison overalls and flanked by his legal team.
Prior to the hearing he had predicted he would receive a ‘Stalinist’ sentence of at least 18 years.
The Kremlin denies persecution and claims his case is purely a legal matter for the courts.
A spokesman for Putin said he was not following the trial.
Mr Navalny has urged Russians not to be deterred by his treatment and to continue to oppose the regime. Marie Struthers of Amnesty International said: ‘This new sentence against Alexei Navalny is little more than a stealthily imposed life sentence.
‘It is also a sinister act of political vengeance that not only targets Navalny personally but serves as a warning to state critics across the country. The outcome of today’s sham trial offers just the latest example of the systematic oppression of Russian civil society that has intensified since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.’
‘We urge the Russian authorities to end Alexei Navalny’s unjust imprisonment and release him.’