On February 16, 2024, prominent Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny died. Thousands paid tribute to him today, but the Russian opposition is divided. Many are discouraged, disillusioned, and disillusioned.
Alexei Navalny died under unclear circumstances in a Russian penal camp on February 16, 2024. His supporters believe that the Kremlin ordered the murder. Since then, the mass protests in Russia, which were the greatest strength of Navalny as an opposition figure, have been unthinkable.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his entourage, who fought against Navalny, continue to rule. And Navalny's close associates? What weight does his political legacy have today - the Anti-Corruption Fund (ACF) created by Navalny? The fund's revelations about corruption among the highest Russian politicians and civil servants caused outrage among millions of viewers. And today?
Ever further from the focus of public interest
For independent political scientist Alexander Kanev, there is no doubt: Navalny's fund has irretrievably lost its authority after his death. Kanev recalled to DV that the ACF was a symbol of the opposition, a structure that influenced political life in Russia. “The ACF was always worth writing about, it itself was a real event“. Today it is history, mainly for two reasons: one is Navalny's arrest, “because from that moment on, after the most important opposition politician was isolated, the field for political action shrank“. The public's interest in figures from the "second or third tier", as Kanev defines Navalny's closest entourage, is not comparable to the interest in Navalny.
Kanev's opinion is that after Navalny's arrest, the news has concentrated on the fight to protect his personality, which has limited interest among the general public. "Because this was no longer a fight for the citizens, for the interests of Russia, but a fight for himself," explains the political scientist.
The second reason is Russia's war against Ukraine, which has changed the political agenda "drastically". “To put it bluntly, when there is armed opposition, when the country is under sanctions and a state of emergency reigns, corruption investigations against senior or junior officials take on secondary importance“, the political scientist summarizes.
Without Navalny, there is almost no opposition
For these two reasons, Navalny's FBK was pushed far from the center of public interest. The fund no longer has anything to offer, says Kanev. And after the flight of many political activists from Russia, Navalny's followers could dare to make a new beginning or at least become the voice of a part of society. Instead, Navalny's people, known to all as Kremlin critics, had to defend themselves from the accusations of other prominent Kremlin critics: those who for years exposed dubious schemes with investigations have apparently allowed exactly such schemes within their own ranks. A real mudslinging battle has begun in some Russian social media and exiled media outlets. This has affected more than just Navalny's fund, former MP Dmitry Gudkov told DW: "Unfortunately, the opposition has failed to unite," he points out.
Gudkov also lives in exile after being sentenced to eight years in prison in Russia for discrediting the Russian army. The former MP admits that he does not understand what kind of political action in today's Russia can lead to change, since "the one who takes to the streets now will be imprisoned for a long time."
Has Navalny's death discouraged people?
Another former Russian politician, also in exile - Maxim Reznik - shares Gudkov's opinion. He also criticizes the opposition's inability to unite. “We are all no moral scale and are as far from Navalny as we are from the moon. We should not try to take his place – it cannot be taken. But we should try to understand his legacy, which I think is to fight together.“
Navalny's death probably scared off some of the people who were ready to join the opposition and the resistance, Reznik suggests. “I think Putin also pursued this goal – to shake society once again, and Navalny's murder was an attempt to kill hope. Probably, among a certain number of people, this terrible crime achieved its goal. Many were discouraged, disillusioned, disillusioned and experienced immense pain,” he says. But there are others who are able to “overcome this pain, go all the way and do everything possible so that Alexei's sacrifice is not in vain“.
That is why, according to Reznik, there will continue to be freedom fighters in Russia. “I am firmly convinced that sooner or later Navalny will win this fight.“
Take responsibility
Former MP Gudkov believes that over time, Navalny's name will become more and more symbolic and will inspire more and more people. However, Gudkov points out that Navalny's murder was committed in the second year of the war in Ukraine, when the regime in Russia was no longer able to be stopped. Therefore, his death was not so shocking for many - to a much greater extent, “it increased disgust with the government“. At the same time, it is also a lesson for the future: “In Russia, it is customary to avoid responsibility. Some politician appears and everyone thinks that he will do everything for them. He gives them hope - like Navalny, who showed no fear in prison. But the symbol of fearlessness was killed. And who would have the courage to do something for all of us now?“.
That is why many in Russia are in despair in the meantime. But “probably this is also an element of civic maturity - people realize that no one will do anything for them and hope that the people of Russia will understand that they themselves must take political responsibility“, Gudkov points out.
In this context, political scientist Kanev sees in Navalny a politician who has managed to unite as many people as possible behind him. “He consciously broke away from the old structures, deliberately did not work with the old political networks, but created new ones and looked for new supporters. This process has been over for a year. And so far there is no one to resume it“, says Kanev.