Alexei Navalny is a name that few of us had really heard of until today. But then, few of us can claim to keep up with Russian politics. However, we’ll probably be hearing a lot more about Navalny as the struggle for true democracy in Russia gains momentum. So why is this man so important?
Navalny rose to fame as he took part in and became the unofficial leader of the election year protests of 2012. Prompted by the authoritarian behavior of the United Russia government (which was officially reelected with 60% of the vote, though international observers say in a free, unaltered ballot it would have been 40%) the protests promptly developed into a call by the younger generation for a new society. Navalny, a 37-year-old lawyer, describes this society as one in which corruption is a memory, the ‘feudal’ system which has developed under a few billionaires is abolished, and tolerance is a virtue. It’s a set of ideals which chimes with a number of Russians, but a majority do not trust anybody but Putin to govern.
However, this hasn’t stopped Navalny picking up a lot of support as a candidate for the Mayor of Moscow.That is a very high profile and powerful role, and would make him the, most powerful government figure opposed to the Kremlin. Despite having the entire media pitted against him (let’s not forget how tightly the state controls news outlets through ownership and intimidation of journalists) he is polling in a strong second place. Or was. Several hours ago, Navalny was found guilty of embezzlement from a timber firm after a dormant investigation was suddenly reopened. I can’t comment on whether he is guilty of the crime, but I am one of the many who find the reopening of the case by corrupt state prosecutors and the developments in Navalny’s career to be too much of a convenient coincidence for the Kremlin.
What is also going to be a convenient coincidence for the Kremlin is the length of Navalny’s prison sentence. I’ll bet that the ‘independent’ judge will apply the maximum tariff- which would just prevent Navalny standing in the 2018 presidential election. Some are drawing parallels with the incarceration of Nelson Mandela, though I think that is wishful thinking. What is true is that his imprisonment is only going to strengthen the perception of the situation through the David versus Goliath template. Navalny sees imprisonment as inevitable, and probably concluded as much once he took a stand against United Russia. If today’s events encourage, one way or another, Russia’s youth to step up their resistance to their country’s stagnation under a tide of exploitation and mediocrity, then they will ultimately help the democrats.