As of: February 20, 2024, 1:04 a.m
By: Jens Kiffmeier
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After Navalny's death, thousands took to the streets in Russia.
They sense that the cause of death is being covered up.
But the judiciary reacts with punishments.
Moscow - They live dangerously, but anger still drives them to the streets: After the reports of the death of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, the protest movement in Russia is swelling again.
One of the brave ones is Grigory Mikhnov-Voitenko.
The priest of the Apostolic Orthodox Church, a religious group independent of the Russian Orthodox Church, called for a memorial service for the late opposition leader on social media on Saturday - and was immediately arrested in front of his home, as US broadcaster
CBS
reported .
Particularly bitter: He is said to have suffered a stroke in the detention cell, after which he had to be taken to hospital.
Protests after Navalny's death in Russia: Justice responds with 400 arrests - judgments in urgent proceedings
But despite the Kremlin's repression and some bizarre reactions, many thousands of people in Russia are not letting it get them down.
After Navalny's death, a wave of protests and memorial events broke out in 36 cities.
Everywhere people laid flowers and lit candles at monuments to victims of political violence.
However, more than 400 arrests were made.
And justice in Russia is swift.
Following the death of Kremlin opponent Navalny, courts have so far imposed more than 200 sentences in urgent proceedings against mourners taking part in spontaneous commemorations.
In St. Petersburg alone, the courts in the metropolis ordered arrest or fines against 199 people, and there were also several such administrative punishments in the Russian capital Moscow.
In St. Petersburg, more than 154 people were held in a holding cell, most for several days, the
Huffington Post
reported.
Russia's power apparatus suppressed protests after Navalny's death with a massive police presence.
© IMAGO/Andrei Bok/SOPA Images
According to the protocols, the sentences in the St. Petersburg courts were imposed for disturbing public order after unauthorized gatherings in a public place.
According to the law in Russia, this can result in a fine of up to 20,000 rubles, compulsory work hours for the general public or up to 15 days of arrest.
Death in a prison camp: The cause of Alexey Navalny's death remains a mystery
According to official information, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin's opponent died on Friday in the prison camp with the unofficial name "Polar Wolf".
The cause of death and the location where the body is kept remain unclear.
According to official information, after many days in repeatedly ordered solitary confinement, the physically weakened Navalny collapsed while walking in the yard in the camp north of the Arctic Circle in freezing temperatures.
According to the prison service, attempts at resuscitation were unsuccessful.
However, there are always strong doubts about the official information.
There are anonymous eyewitness reports from prison that Navalny's body is said to have had many bruises.
It is also unclear whether an ambulance was actually called.
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Accused of cover-up: Navalny supporters demand that the body be returned to the family
Because the circumstances and cause of death are unclear, the demonstrators are demanding that the body be returned to the family.
So far, Navalny's mother has been banned from entering the morgue.
According to a media report, the body is being kept in the district hospital in the city of Salekhard in the far north of Siberia.
However, it is still unclear whether an autopsy has already taken place and whether the body is actually there.
Many supporters and Western heads of state accuse the Kremlin around Russian President Vladimir Putin of political murder.
Above all, US President Joe Biden called Putin responsible for the death of the Kremlin critic.
There is now great concern that the Kremlin could cover up the background to the death.
“It is obvious that the murderers want to cover their tracks and therefore do not hand over his body and even hide it from his mother,” said Navalny spokeswoman Kira Jarmisch on Telegram.
The opposition team had been warning for months that the Kremlin could carry out a perfidious murder plot in the prison camp.
After Navalny's death: 46,000 Russians sign online petition
The Navalny team is not alone.
46,000 Russians are said to have joined an online call that the civil rights platform
OWD-Info
launched at the weekend.
As the independent news platform
Meduzza
reported, the Russian authorities are being asked to hand over the body.
This must be done as quickly as possible, the statement says.
“At least after his death, Alexei Navalny should be with his relatives.”
However, the Russian government still believes criticism is inappropriate.
What happens to the body is not within the Kremlin's competence, said Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the Russian news agency
Interfax
, adding: "No, this is not a question that concerns us.
We do not deal with this matter.
This is not one of the tasks of the presidential administration.” However, the Kremlin’s powers are considered unlimited.
Pussy Riot in Berlin: Activists fear Putin's extended arm reaching into Germany
The extent to which the influence of the Russian security organs extends was also shown in Berlin at the weekend.
The protest group Pussy Riot started a demonstration in front of the Russian embassy, camouflaged with pink balaclavas.
But the action didn't last too long - partly because of concerns about the consequences.
Pussy Riot explained that the situation was also threatening for members of the group.
“We call on the international community to show solidarity and work for justice,” the news channel
ntv
quoted the group as saying.
“The murder of Alexei Navalny and the threat to Pussy Riot members are attacks on the fundamental values of freedom, justice and human dignity that we must resolutely defend.”
Navalny's wife seeks support from the EU: Julia Navalnaya travels to Brussels
Western politicians also want to give the protesters a bit of support as far as they can.
Navalny's widow, Julija Navalnaya, traveled to Brussels on Monday (February 19) for consultations with European foreign ministers.
As foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said, the EU foreign ministers wanted to "send a strong signal of support for the freedom fighters in Russia" at their meeting and honor the memory of the 47-year-old Navalny.
However, this didn't help priest Grigory Mikhnov-Voitenko in Moscow.
(
jkf
)