A year on from his death, Alexei Navalny still shines bright in a dark land
Last Sunday marked one year since Alexei Navalny, Russia’s best-known opposition leader and anti-corruption activist, was murdered in an Arctic penal colony by Vladimir Putin’s regime. Countless other political opponents, critics and dissidents have been killed, jailed or exiled since Putin first became president 25 years ago.
All vestiges of an open society, democratic accountability, independent media and free speech in Russia have been eviscerated. Accused of war crimes in Ukraine, which he invaded three years ago, Putin poses a threat to Europe – as well as to his own people.
Navalny’s fate was terrible and instructive. No radical, he tried to reform Russia from within. His Anti-Corruption Foundation published factual investigations into official wrongdoing.…
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Guardian Weekly (Digital) - 1 Issue, 21 February 2025