https://theconversation.com/what-is-navalnys-legacy-for-russia-249692
This is the best day of the past five months for me … This is my home … I am
not afraid of anything and I urge you not to be afraid of anything either.
"These were Alexei Navalny’s words after landing at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo
Airport on January 17 2021. Russia’s leading opposition figure had spent the
past months recovering in Germany from an attempt on his life by the Russian
Federal Security Service (FSB). Minutes after making his comments, Navalny was
detained at border control. And he would remain behind bars until his death on
February 16 2024, in the remote “Polar Wolf” penal colony within the Arctic
Circle.
“Why did he return to Russia?” That’s the question I’m asked about Navalny most
frequently. Wasn’t it a mistake to return to certain imprisonment, when he
could have maintained his opposition to Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin,
from abroad?
But Navalny’s decision to return didn’t surprise me. I’ve researched and
written about him extensively, including co-authoring
Navalny: Putin’s
Nemesis, Russia’s Future?, the first English-language, book-length account of
his life and political activities. Defying the Kremlin by returning was a
signature move, reflecting both his obstinacy and bravery. He wanted to make
sure his supporters and activists in Russia did not feel abandoned, risking
their lives while he lived a cushy life in exile.
Besides, Navalny wasn’t returning to certain imprisonment. A close ally of his,
Vladimir Ashurkov, told me in May 2022 that his “incarceration in Russia was
not a certainty. It was a probability, a scenario – but it wasn’t like he was
walking into a certain long-term prison term.”
Also, Navalny hadn’t chosen to leave Russia in the first place. He was
unconscious when taken by plane from Omsk to Berlin for treatment following his
poisoning with the nerve agent Novichok in August 2020. Navalny had been
consistent in saying he was a Russian politician who needed to remain in Russia
to be effective.
In a subsequent interview, conducted in a forest on the outskirts of the German
capital as he slowly recovered, Navalny said: “In people’s minds, if you leave
the country, that means you’ve surrendered.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics