Death of Navalny

Courts deem name an extremist symbol

The funeral of Alexei Navalny on Friday

(Bild: AP)

In some Russian regions, courts have deemed the name "Navalny" to be prohibited extremist symbolism. On this basis, people who wrote the name of the slain opposition leader on posters can be sentenced to administrative penalties.

The NGO "First Department" referred to judgments in which people were sentenced to administrative detention after commemorative actions because they had used the name "Navalny". This was justified by the fact that the politician's first name and surname referred to extremist and banned organizations such as the "Navalny Staffs", the "Fund for Combating Corruption" (FBK) and the "Fund for the Protection of Civil Rights" (FSPG).

According to the report, there have been such cases in Chelyabinsk, Krasnodar, Murmansk and Ulkanovsk. "The court decisions show that this adjudication practice occurs in different regions. This means one thing: there is a written order from above," said Yevgeny Smirnov, a lawyer for the NGO.

Funeral in Moscow on Friday

(Bild: AP)

Navalny with his wife and two children

(Bild: APA/AP Photo/Andrew Lubimov)

Action on social media?
It remains unclear how Russian law enforcement authorities will deal with the mention of the name "Navalny" on social networks. "Theoretically, they could also use this interpretation against those who wrote on social media and even against those who were at the funeral," said "First Department." They do not believe this is likely, but will monitor the practice. On Friday, more than 100 people were detained at funeral ceremonies (see video above).

There will probably be no investigation into the death of Alexei Navalny. "We consider the demands for 'transparent, independent investigations' to be nothing other than gross interference in the internal affairs of our country," said Russian diplomat Aleksandr Volgaryov. The majority of Western diplomats in the OSCE would not understand who this deceased Russian citizen was. Volgaryov portrayed Navalny as an economic criminal and nationalist who had been supported by Western intelligence services.

From Austria, Federal Chancellor Karl Nehammer and Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (both ÖVP), among others, had called for an investigation. Nehammer objected that this would probably be "more than difficult".