In the case of the alleged poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, Russia violated the European Convention on Human Rights. Authorities failed to effectively investigate ruled by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg. The investigators did not investigate the allegations that there could have been a political motive and the possible involvement of state agents in the attempted murder. They also failed to respond to reports that a banned chemical weapon had been used.
The ECHR has now ruled unanimously that Navalny’s right to life under the European Convention on Human Rights had been violated. The investigations of the Russian authorities are incomprehensible. Navalny’s right to participate in the process was also not taken into account. Russia was therefore ordered to pay 40,000 euros in damages.
In 2020, Navalny barely survived an attack with the neurotoxin Novichok. After being treated for his poisoning at the Berlin Charité, Navalny returned to Russia in January 2021, was arrested and later sentenced to nine years in prison for alleged fraud. Since then, the most prominent critic of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin has been in prison as a political prisoner for more than two years. For months he has been locked up almost continuously in a two-by-three-meter isolation cell. Human rights activists speak of torture.
Russia no longer recognizes the judgments of the Court of Human Rights. The country was expelled from the Council of Europe because of the war of aggression against Ukraine. It is therefore no longer a member of the European Convention on Human Rights, which the Court of Justice ensures is observed.
Navalny faces another 30 years in prison in Russia
Another criminal case against the imprisoned Kremlin opponent begins this Tuesday in Russia. In all, the judiciary formulated seven new charges, including founding and financing an extremist organization and downplaying Nazism. The Kremlin opponent denies the allegations. According to Navalny’s lawyer, the Moscow City Court is sitting in a penal camp 260 kilometers north-east of the capital, closed to the public. Navalny faces another 30 years in prison in the process.
Meanwhile, national and international support for Alexej Navalny remains unbroken. Hundreds of supporters took to the streets in Russia over the weekend to mark the 47th birthday of the imprisoned Kremlin critic – more than 100 of them were arrested, according to the civil rights portal OVD-Info. There were demonstrations not only in Russia, but also in other countries. Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Jarmysch published photos of supporters from Japan, Australia and Georgia on Twitter. In Berlin, too, people took to the streets for rallies.