Alexei Navalny’s death last week sent ripples of grief around the world – but how are people responding in Russia?
The prominent critic of Vladimir Putin was imprisoned in a penal colony in the Arctic Circle at the time of his death on Friday.
On Monday, Navalny’s spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said that Russia has still not revealed cause of death, and neither his mother nor his lawyers had been permitted to see his body.
The event triggered an international response because Navalny was the leader of the Russian opposition, and often accused Putin and his elite of corruption.
The Kremlin appears to be trying to downplay the incident. The Russian president has not publicly acknowledged Navalny’s death, and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov just said the death will be examined by the Federal Penitentiary Service last Friday.
Western media has been covering every new development with his death – but the picture is not quite the same within Russia, where the Kremlin has a tight grip over what news is reported, and what gets censored.
According to the BBC’s Russia editor Steve Rosenberg, some newspapers did not mention Navalny’s death at all – while others made a brief mention of him.
BBC’s Francis Scarr claimed on X (formerly Twitter) that news broadcasts buried the story deep in their programmes, choosing not to show Navalny’s face and just calling him a “convict” – if they covered the story at all.
He summarised: “The Kremlin propaganda machine is intent on burying him in ignominy.”
However, there has been more recognition of Navalny and his legacy among the general public, with supporters laying flowers in Moscow in his memory – although Russian police have tried to clear such public displays.
Footage shared on social media shows supporters mourning for Navalny as they gather by a monument to victims of repression in St Petersburg, crying, singing hymns and lighting candles.
The online news outlet SOTA reported that “despite the authorities’ attempts to remove the flowers, they keep appearing”.
According to independent media and human rights defence group, OVD-Info, more than 400 people have been detained at events across 32 Russian cities since Navalny’s death – including journalists.
It has been the largest wave of arrests at political events since September 2022, when the Kremlin unveiled partial mobilisation, calling reservists up to serve in the Ukraine war.
However, former adviser to Putin, Sergei v, had quite a different interpretation of what the general public believe in Russia.
He told Times Radio on Monday: “[The] majority of Russian people believe that obviously Navalny has been killed by a coalition of the Ukrainian, British and American terrorism service, for their political purpose.”
He also told GB News on Saturday that Putin had nothing to do with Navalny’s death.