Russian opponent Alexeï Navalny was buried Friday in a Moscow cemetery in the presence of thousands of his supporters who came to pay a final tribute to the main critic of the Kremlin, who died in murky circumstances in an Arctic prison.
Coming in large numbers with flowers, some in tears or with tears in their eyes, Navalny’s supporters present chanted “No to war!” », “We will not forget you!” » or even “We will not forgive”.
After a short ceremony in a church in the presence of his parents, during which the remains of Alexeï Navalny were exposed in an open coffin according to the Orthodox rite, the opponent was buried in the cemetery of Borissovo, in the south -east of the capital, noted AFP journalists.
At the time of the funeral the soundtrack of the film sounded Terminator 2the “best film ever made”, according to the opponent, explained his spokesperson Kira Iarmych.
In the church, his body was shown to the public for the first time, covered with dozens of red and white flowers, while those present held candles, noted an AFP journalist.
Those who managed to enter the small church were able to see the pale face and distorted features of Alexei Navalny. The hearse carrying his coffin had arrived moments earlier, to the applause of the crowd.
Outside the church, a large crowd of several thousand people gathered, forming a very long line. Riot police were present in force and dotted the area with barriers.
“It’s painful, people like him should not die, honest people, with principles, ready to sacrifice themselves,” testifies Anna Stepanova, also emphasizing the opponent’s “sense of humor.” “Even in pain, he made jokes.”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov warned of potential sanctions in the event of participation in any “unauthorized” demonstration on the occasion of this funeral. During his daily press conference, Mr. Peskov also affirmed that he had “nothing to say” to the family of the deceased.
“drunk without you”
His widow Yulia Navalnaïa thanked her husband for “these 26 years of absolute happiness”, in a farewell message posted on social networks.
“I don’t know how I’m going to live without you, but I’m going to do my best to make sure you’re happy and proud of me up there,” she said. ” I love you forever. »
Critic of the Kremlin and charismatic anti-corruption activist, Alexeï Navalny died on February 16 at the age of 47 in a Russian penal colony in the Arctic in circumstances which remain obscure. His collaborators, Yulia Navalnaïa and the West have accused Vladimir Putin of being responsible for his death, which the Kremlin denies.
After delaying handing over Mr. Navalny’s remains to his loved ones, the Russian authorities finally did so last weekend, allowing a funeral.
The American ambassador and the French and German ambassadors visited the site, as well as three opposition figures still at large: Evgeni Roïzman, Boris Nadezhdine and Ekaterina Dountsova.
According to Maxime, a 43-year-old computer scientist who came to pay tribute to the opponent requesting anonymity, Alexeï Navalny “showed freedom”.
Denis, 26, a volunteer in a charity association, greets a man thanks to whom he became “interested in politics”, in an increasingly authoritarian regime where young people’s disinterest in political issues is very strong.
Since the handing over of Alexeï Navalny’s body to his mother on Saturday, the opponent’s team was looking for a place for a “public farewell”, but was “rejected” any request, accusing the authorities of putting pressure on the managers.
“The Kremlin killed him”
His team had nevertheless called on Muscovites to come and say goodbye to Alexeï Navalny, and his supporters in other cities and abroad to gather in front of memorials to honor his memory. Gatherings embarrassing for those in power, two weeks before the presidential election (March 15-17) supposed to extend Vladimir Putin’s reign in power.
Nearly 400 people were arrested by the police in the days following the death of the opponent, during improvised rallies in his memory.
Yulia Navalnaïa regretted on Wednesday that no civil ceremony had been authorized to allow the exposure of her husband’s body to a wider public, as is often the case after the death of major personalities in Russia.
“The people in the Kremlin killed him, then trampled his body, then trampled his mother and now trample his memory,” she lambasted, accusing Vladimir Putin and the mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, of being responsible for this situation.
Before his poisoning in 2020, which he barely survived and for which he blamed Vladimir Putin, then his arrest and sentence to 19 years in prison for “extremism”, Alexeï Navalny managed to mobilize crowds, particularly in the Russian capital .
His movement, which relied on investigations denouncing the corruption of Russian elites, has been methodically dismantled in recent years, sending many of its collaborators behind bars or in exile.
After the death of her husband, Yulia Navalnaïa promised to continue her fight.