Despite a large police presence, thousands of citizens in Moscow said goodbye to Alexei Navalny. They chanted his name in front of a church and spoke of hope for a better future.
Moving – this one word sums up what happened in Moscow. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people crowded into the Borisovskaya Cemetery in the southeast of the Russian capital. Some made a cross or bowed before the open grave. Most of them threw earth in – the last honor for Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
Many of those who came had to overcome fears, like this woman:
I couldn’t help it. I had to come because I feel like I need to pay tribute to this person. It was very scary. We arrived early, stood and hid the flowers from the cameras. But now I understand that this has to be done, that we have to talk.
Before Navalny’s actual funeral, a memorial service was held for him. In close family and friends, in a church about a half-hour walk from the cemetery.
Relatives and friends of Alexei Navalny in a church in Moscow.
controls and Surveillance cameras
Security forces and mourners confronted each other in front of the church. At one point 40 police vehicles were counted, from cars to police vehicles. There were ID checks and surveillance cameras on the lampposts that line the entrances to the church.
I came because I think it is necessary for everyone who knew Alexei to come and say goodbye. I consider this a personal loss. It’s very difficult to get through this. I’m not afraid. No amount of fear can exceed the sadness of losing this personality.
The people in front of the church chanted “Love is stronger than fear” or “Alexei, Alexei”. The mourning for Navalny temporarily turned into political confessions.
Police officers observe numerous people heading towards the Borisovskaya Cemetery in Moscow for Navalny’s funeral.
Nadjeschdin also says goodbye
Some European diplomats, such as the German ambassador, also accompanied Navalny. And Russian politicians also came, those who, like Navalny, are in opposition to the Kremlin.
Boris Nadjezhdin, for example, who as a pacifist wanted to run against President Vladimir Putin in the presidential election in two weeks, but was not allowed to run. “We are at the place where people say goodbye to Alexei. Many people are there, there are several thousand,” he says. On the one hand, today is tragic: “We are saying goodbye to the personality who has become a symbol of this era. On the other hand, there is hope that in the end everything will be fine and Russia will be peaceful and free, just as Alexei dreamed of.”
No comment from the Kremlin
Incidentally, the Kremlin did not want to comment on Navalny. When asked by a journalist whether he could classify Navalny as a political figure, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov simply said, no, he couldn’t.
Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny is buried. His ideals, his dreams of a non-corrupt Russia, of freedom and justice, are not. The mourners demonstrated this to the Kremlin.
Björn Blaschke, ARD Moscow, currently Chisinau, tagesschau, March 1st, 2024 5:29 p.m