Hundreds of people gathered Friday evening across Europe and the United States to pay tribute to the Kremlin’s number one opponent, Alexeï Navalny, whose death Moscow announced.
Mr. Navalny, who had rallied many supporters with his criticism of corruption in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, died Friday at age 47 in the Arctic penal colony where he was serving a 19-year prison sentence.
In Warsaw, around a hundred people demonstrated in front of the Russian embassy in Poland, mostly young people, many of whom seemed upset.
Denislan, a 29-year-old Russian who did not wish to give his full identity, explained that he had come to protest against “political assassinations” and saw in Navalny a “symbol of Russian civil society”. “I am here because Russia should and could be a democratic country,” he said in a trembling voice.
Candles were lit and flowers placed against the fence surrounding the heavily guarded embassy building.
Protesters shouted slogans including “Putin, murderer” and “Never forget, never forgive.”
Several hundred people brandishing portraits of the deceased also gathered in Lithuania, a country very critical of Russia. The demonstration was held at the memorial to the victims of the Soviet occupation in Vilnius.
A Russian woman who refused to identify herself and has lived in Lithuania since last year said Navalny was “a person who said [qu’elle] think and [lui] gave hope.”
“Even from prison, he managed to find strength and give it to those who resist,” she said. “I thought he would live forever.”
” Hard blow “
There were also several hundred of them in Berlin in front of the Russian embassy. “Murderous Putin!” Putin in The Hague! » (city of international courts) chanted the crowd gathered on the famous avenue Unter den Linden, in the center of the German capital.
In a predominantly Russian-speaking crowd with Germans mingling, many signs carried photos or quotes from the opponent or insults against Vladimir Putin.
“It’s an emotional blow. We are waiting for official confirmation from the family,” Evgeni Syrokin, coordinator of the FreeNavalny movement in Germany, told AFP. “It motivates us to continue working. We are fighting against Putin.”
Behind him, flowers, candles and photos of Alexeï Navalny multiplied on the sidewalk.
“I feel completely empty. I’m not a big activist, but I take this very seriously. This news simply took my breath away,” said Mikhail Filippov, 40, who fled the mobilization in Russia with his 21-year-old son.
“They killed him, there’s no doubt about it. For me, it’s just horror on a personal level. It’s a sign that the compass has lost its north,” said Marat Guelman, 63, a renowned Russian collector and critic of Moscow, now based in Berlin.
In the Netherlands, several hundred people demonstrated on Dam Square in front of the royal palace in Amsterdam as well as in front of the Russian embassy in The Hague, on the gates of which a portrait of the deceased was hung.
Protesters in Amsterdam carried signs reading “Putin is a killer” and “Don’t give up,” according to the ANP news agency.
” Shame “
In Switzerland, some 150 people gathered at Place des Nations in Geneva, portraits of the opponent or bouquets of white flowers in their hands, AFP noted. A woman carried a sign “ Putin is a killer » (“Putin is a killer”).
In Zurich, around 300 people spontaneously gathered for a memorial ceremony next to the main train station, the Keystone-ATS agency reported.
Some had brought posters with the words “Never give up” written next to the portrait of Alexei Navalny. “Putin killed Navalny,” another poster said.
In London, several dozen people gathered in front of the Russian embassy, behind barriers, carrying signs in English or Russian saying “Putin assassin”, “Assassins”, “Navalny our hero”, “My Russia is in prison”, “Don’t give up”, “We are Navalny” or even “Putin is burning in hell”.
In the United States, several hundred demonstrators also gathered in front of the Russian embassy in Washington, brandishing signs including “Shame on Putin”.
The words “Putin” and “murderer” were projected on the walls of the embassy on this occasion.
“It’s such a tragic day,” said Polina, a 29-year-old gymnastics coach, hailing Alexeï Navalny as a “symbol of freedom, bravery, and resistance”.
In New York, people laid flowers in front of the Russian consulate and hung photos of the opponent on the building’s gates.