By
NBC News
and
The Associated Press
A thousand people defied the surveillance of Vladimir Putin's regime to say goodbye to the opposition Alexei Navalny at the funeral held this Friday in Moscow.
"You were not afraid and neither were we", "No to war [in Ukraine]", "Russia will be free" or "Russia without Putin" were some of the cries of the crowd after receiving the coffin with solemn applause in a Orthodox Church.
Navalny was buried in the cemetery to Frank Sinatra's song
My Way
while hundreds of thousands watched on YouTube.
Navalny's death was reported on February 16 by the prison in the Arctic Circle where the Russian opponent was serving the 19 years to which he was sentenced by the Putin regime, after suffering several assassination attempts.
Her widow, Yulia Navalnaya, accused the Russian leader of ordering the death of her husband;
His circle of friends said it occurred when his possible release in a prisoner exchange was being negotiated.
Navalny's family later reported problems recovering the body, finding a place to watch him or hold the funeral, or even having a hearse in which to transport him in a Russia crushed under Putin's yoke.
A woman places flowers as a sign of final farewell to Alexei Navalny, in front of the Russian embassy in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Friday, March 1, 2024.Mindaugas Kulbis / AP
Navalnaya paid tribute to her late husband this morning, thanking him for “26 years of absolute happiness.”
“I don't know how to live without you, but I will try to make you happy for me and proud of me up there.
I don't know if I can handle it or not, but I will try,” she said in a message posted on the X network. “I love you forever.
Rest in peace".
The funeral was broadcast live on the Internet, allowing those who, from inside or outside Russia, saw hope in Navalny's fight to follow it.
Several foreign diplomats, including the US ambassador, attended the funeral.
The images of the event in Moscow would be ordinary in the United States or other parts of the democratic world, but they are extraordinary in Putin's Russia.
But despite the regime's harassment, thousands of people gathered in front of the church even at the risk of being arrested for burying the opposition leader.
After
My Way
rang
the iconic song from the movie
Terminator
.
A spokesperson for the Russian regime said he had “no comment” regarding Navalny's funeral, but did threaten: “There is a law and it must be followed.
Any unauthorized gathering will be contrary to it, so participants will be held accountable.”
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, left, says her final goodbye next to her son's open coffin at the Borisovskoye cemetery in Moscow, Russia, Friday, March 1, 2024. AP
Putin has repressed all forms of protest extremely harshly, particularly since 2014, promulgating rules that prohibit peaceful gatherings, according to human rights groups.
Organizers of any demonstration must first submit written requests to authorities, and even then they are prohibited from demonstrating near buildings such as courts and prisons.
Penalties can be up to five years in prison, although, as with everything in Russia, authorities can apply a broad interpretation of these laws and punishments.