Protests began in Russia on 23 January 2021 in support of the arrested opposition leader Alexei Navalny and following the release of the film Palace for Putin, which revolves around the connection between President Vladimir Putin and a palace allegedly being built for him. According to the BBC Russian Service, protests were held in 122 towns and cities in Russia.
Background: Poisoning of Alexei Navalny
Navalny had been hospitalized on 20
August 2020, in serious condition after he was poisoned with a Novichok nerve
agent during a flight from Tomsk to Moscow.
He was medically evacuated to Berlin and discharged on 22 September. The use of a Novichok nerve agent was
confirmed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Though the Kremlin denied involvement in his
poisoning, the EU and the UK responded by imposing sanctions on six senior
Russian officials and a state chemical centre.
Navalny accused President Vladimir Putin of being responsible for his
poisoning. An investigation by Bellingcat
and The Insider implicated agents from the Federal Security Service (FSB)
in Navalny's poisoning.
Navalny returned to Russia on 17 January
2021, where he was immediately detained on accusations of violating terms of a
suspended jail sentence. Prior to his
return, the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) said that Navalny may face jail
time upon his arrival in Moscow for violating the terms of his probation,
saying it would be "obliged" to detain him once he returned; in 2014,
Navalny received a suspended sentence in the Yves Rocher case, which he
called politically motivated and in 2017, the European Court of Human Rights ruled
that Navalny was unfairly convicted. The
Investigative Committee of Russia also said that it was investigating Navalny
for alleged fraud. A court decision the
next day ordered the detention of Navalny until 15 February for violating his
parole. A makeshift court was set up in the police station Navalny was being
held. Another hearing would be held on 29 January to determine whether his
suspended sentence should be replaced with a jail term. Navalny described the procedure as “ultimate
lawlessness”. He also called on his supporters to take to the streets, saying:
“Do not be silent. Resist. Take to the streets — not for me, but for you”.
Navalny's regional network head, Leonid Volkov, said that preparations were
being made for protests to be organised across the country on 23 January.
While in jail, a video of an investigation by Navalny and his Anti-Corruption
Foundation (FBK) was published, accusing Putin of corruption. The video also
urged people to take to the streets. Before
the protests had begun, the video received over 60 million views on YouTube. The
video was released on 19 January, and by the next day the state communications
watchdog Roskomnadzor was demanding the social networks VKontakte (VK) and TikTok
to stop the spread of calls to the protests.
The efficacy of these calls is disputed.
Arrests of several of Navalny’s aides
and allies, including Lyubov Sobol, began on 21 January. Several were jailed or fined, with Sobol
being released. The Ministry of Internal
Affairs also threatened to prosecute those spreading calls to join the
protests. The Prosecutor General's
Office also ordered the censor, Roskomnadzor, to block access to pages that
call for protests. On 22 January, the
Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Moscow issued a
statement warning against calls to the protests or participation in them. It
stated that any attempts to hold unauthorized events as well as “provocative
actions by the participants” would be regarded as a “threat to public order”
and be “immediately suppressed”. Social media networks began removing
information about the protests. VK blocked access to a number of pages on the
protests, with the pages stating that it was blocked on the requirement of the
General Prosecutor’s Office. Roskomnadzor
also stated that VK, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube blocked some content which
involved “calls for children to participate in illegal mass events”. However, Facebook and YouTube have countered
this claim. Facebook said it “received requests from the local regulator to
restrict access to certain content that calls for protest. Since this content
doesn’t violate our Community Standards, it remains on our platform.”
Protests in other Countries
Protests
were also held in cities around the world, including Berlin, Munich, Prague,
Krakow, Helsinki, London, Tallinn, The Hague, Denver, Vienna, Tel Aviv,
Copenhagen, and Tokyo.
In
The Hague, Netherlands, around 250 people gathered at a rally. In Berlin, Germany, around 1,000 protesters
were estimated to have gathered at a rally.
In Copenhagen, Denmark, around 150 people gathered in front of the
Russian Embassy.
In
Stockholm, Sweden, around 80 people gathered outside the Russian embassy. In Gothenburg, around 20 people gathered
outside the Russian consulate.
In
Belgrade, Serbia, around 10 people gathered outside the Church of Saint Sava before
the police came because they "violated epidemiological measures".
In
Tel Aviv, Israel, around 1,500 to 2,000 people were estimated to have gathered
at a rally near the Russian embassy. Due to COVID related restrictions, the
crowd was asked to disperse by the organizers. Several hundred demonstrators
then moved towards the Russian embassy. Another 600 to 1000 protesters were
estimated to have gathered at a rally in Haifa.
In
Moldova, there were protests in favor of Navalny but also some protests against
him.
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