Russian opposition leader Navalny expected to die in prison, memoir reveals

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Russia's astir salient absorption person for a decade, Alexei Navalny, believed helium would dice successful prison, according to his memoir.

A fierce professional of President Vladimir Putin, he died successful an Arctic Circle jailhouse successful February portion serving 19 years connected extremism charges that were wide seen arsenic politically motivated.

The New Yorker and the Times person published excepts from the book, a posthumous grounds of Navalny's past years, including those helium spent imprisoned.

"I volition walk the remainder of my beingness successful situation and dice here," helium wrote connected 22 March 2022.

"There volition not beryllium anybody to accidental goodbye to... All anniversaries volition beryllium celebrated without me. I'll ne'er spot my grandchildren."

Navalny's decease earlier this twelvemonth was met with daze and choler from astir the world, with tributes paid to his unit arsenic a governmental campaigner.

Many blamed Mr Putin. In the contiguous aftermath, however, the Kremlin simply said it was alert helium had died.

In August 2020, Navalny was poisoned astatine the extremity of a travel to Siberia with a Novichok nervus agent.

He began penning his memoir, Patriot, portion undergoing specializer attraction successful Germany.

Recovered, helium returned to Moscow successful January 2021, and was instantly taken into custody.

Navalny spent the remaining 37 months of his beingness successful jail, during which clip helium kept up the diary entries collected successful his memoir.

On 17 January 2022, helium wrote: "The lone happening we should fearfulness is that we volition surrender our homeland to beryllium plundered by a pack of liars, thieves, and hypocrites."

The excerpts hint Navalny's declining health, and seizure the isolation of his imprisonment, with a interaction of his diagnostic humour.

Describing a emblematic time connected 1 July 2022, helium wrote: "At work, you beryllium for 7 hours astatine the sewing instrumentality connected a stool beneath genu height."

"After work, you proceed to beryllium for a fewer hours connected a woody seat nether a representation of Putin. This is called 'disciplinary activity'."

Patriot volition beryllium released connected 22 October. Its US steadfast Knopf is besides readying a Russian version.

In its presumption of the excepts, the New Yorker says that portion successful captivity, Navalny managed to person his squad station immoderate of the diary entries connected societal media.

David Remnick, the exertion of the magazine, wrote that it was "impossible to work Navalny's situation diary without being outraged by the calamity of his suffering, and by his death".

In the last excerpt published successful The New Yorker, dated 17 January 2024, Navalny says that chap inmates and situation guards would often inquire him wherefore helium had chosen to instrumentality to Russia.

The answer, Navalny writes, is simple: "I don't privation to springiness up my state oregon betray it. If your convictions mean something, you indispensable beryllium prepared to basal up for them and marque sacrifices if necessary".

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