One year ago, the world received stunning news. Word came from the Russian penitentiary service: Opposition leader Alexei Navalny had died in the Arctic Circle penal colony where he was serving a prison sentence. In the year since his death at age 47, his Russian opposition group has struggled to find footing against President Vladimir Putin.
Navalny had a vision of a “beautiful Russia of the future.” In that place, leaders were freely elected, corruption was tamed, and democratic institutions worked. His vision for the vast country earned him widespread support—and the wrath of Putin.
As Navalny aspired to public office, authorities responded by bringing multiple criminal charges against him, his allies, and even his relatives. Regularly jailed, Navalny was physically attacked by Kremlin supporters.
In 2017, he announced plans to run for president of Russia. He set up a network of offices and recruited local activists. When Russian officials barred him from running, he kept his regional offices open across Russia’s 11 time zones.
In 2020, Navalny was poisoned with a nerve agent. He blamed the attack on the Kremlin. His family and allies fought to have him flown to Germany for treatment and recovery. Five months later, he returned to Russia. But he was immediately arrested and imprisoned for the last three years of his life.
Authorities blamed Navalny’s death, announced February 16, 2024, on natural causes—a sudden spike in blood pressure and chronic diseases. His family and allies reject that. They insist he was killed on orders from the Kremlin. Officials deny those charges.
Navalny’s death left an impossible void to fill, says supporter Oleg Ivanov. “I’m afraid that there is no one left who could somehow resist” Putin and the Kremlin, he says.
On the anniversary of Navalny’s death on Sunday, supporters flocked to his grave to pay tribute. Diplomats from the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union honored his memory. Applause and calls of “Thank you!” greeted Navalny’s parents.
At the cemetery, Navalny’s mother, Lyudmila, once again called for those responsible for his death to be brought to justice.
Longtime ally Vladimir Ashurkov says, “While he was alive, even from prison, he was raising his voice against the war and against Putin’s tyranny.”
His widow, Yulia Navalnaya, has vowed to continue his fight. She records regular video addresses to her supporters. She has also met Western leaders and officials to advocate for Russians who oppose Putin and his war in Ukraine.
“We know exactly what we are fighting for. The Russia of the future that Alexei dreamt of—free, peaceful, beautiful—is possible. Let’s . . . make his dreams come true,” she said in a video released Sunday.
Today, Navalny’s opposition group is outlawed in Russia. It operates from exile abroad. It continues to expose corruption in Russia by making colorful videos. It organizes occasional protests abroad, condemning Putin and the war in Ukraine. But those actions are unlikely to dent Putin’s war effort or his ever-growing crackdowns on remaining dissidents and ordinary Russians alike.
On Sunday, a woman who gave only her first name, Anastasiia, for fear of reprisal, visited Navalny’s grave. “We were mourning last year, and we are mourning today,” she says. “We really miss him. There are no people like him anymore.”
An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous. But one whose way is straight is an abomination to the wicked. — Proverbs 29:27
