Mourning Navalny: Thousands Pay Tribute Despite Kremlin's Displeasure
On Saturday, Alexei Navalny's mother, Ludmila, visited his grave. She was accompanied by Alla Abrosimova, the mother of the oppositionist's widow, Julia Navalnaya. Julia Navalnaya herself does not appear in Russia. She and her children are abroad. She also did not attend the mourning ceremonies due to the high risk of arrest. Russian policemen have been present at the Borisov Cemetery since the burial.
As reported by the Meduza portal, Russians visiting the cemetery had to pass through gates with a metal detector, and as soon as they laid flowers, they were asked to leave the cemetery.
On Monday, the queue of people waiting to approach the grave of Alexei Navalny stretched over 500 metres.
The pain is unbearable. I am here to honour him, to bow to a brave man with whom our hopes for a better future were tied, for the fight against corruption, for fair courts - said one of the people who came to Navalny's grave, quoted by rmf24.pl
Meanwhile, Reuters quoted one of the mourners, who noted that "he came to honour the memory of a man who became a symbol of perseverance".
Mourners could not appear at the cemetery on Friday, when the service over the coffin was held. At that time, thousands of people were detained in the streets, where chants of "We are not afraid", "Russia will be free" could be heard.
On the day of Alexei Navalny's burial - that is, on Friday, 1 March - in 20 different Russian cities, 103 people were detained.
Death that Shook Russia
News of the sudden death of Alexei Navalny appeared in the media on 16 February. For years, he was Vladimir Putin's most important political opponent. Navalny died in the "Polar Wolf 2" camp beyond the Arctic Circle, where he was serving a 19-year prison sentence. The circumstances of the activist's death are still unclear.
