But many millions of Russians no longer swallow state propaganda.

They know better, both about Navalny and what the reality in Russia looks like.

That is why tens of thousands of Russians in over a hundred cities in recent weeks have gone out to protest.

They demand the release of Navalny.

They know that he was not imprisoned for being a criminal but for pulling down the pants on President Putin, his political henchmen and the swine-rich corrupt clique of oligarchs who, along with Putin, have virtually unrestricted power in Russia.

Although the protests are not primarily about Navalny himself.

Human rights activist Alexander Zhirkin, whom I meet in the city of Penza (600 km southeast of Moscow), says that Navalny is acting as a catalyst.

It was his imprisonment that made people dare to show their dissatisfaction openly.

The protesters are, of course, only a fraction of the population, but they represent tens of millions of people who are dissatisfied with the fact that twenty years under Putin have not given them better living conditions.

- I am not afraid.

And you should not be afraid either.

It was the message from Navalny that made so many, in so many places, venture out into the streets.

They were all aware of the risks, that the police could arrest them at any time, or beat them.

Still, they dared.

The slogans I heard during the demonstrations are not primarily about Navalny.

What people chanted was:

- Russia without Putin!

- Putin is a thief!

- Freedom!

Anyone who thinks so, and also says it in public, risks getting into trouble.

In Penza, I meet two young men who have just received their sentences.

One rather badly treated by the police, robbed of his mobile and sentenced to a couple of thousand kroner in fines.

He stood quietly inside a restaurant and filmed when plainclothes police came and took him.

The other dragged away when he (according to what he himself says) stood and watched, without shouting slogans.

He received 30 hours of community service as punishment.

Not so dangerous perhaps, but in Russia's constitution freedom of assembly is guaranteed ...

Now Navalny is being sewn in for a few years.

Whether there will be more demonstrations is unclear.

Many of the most influential in Navalny's organization are under house arrest and the now most visible, Leonid Volkov (who lives in exile), has said that more demonstrations now only lead to more people being imprisoned and that it is better to save on gunpowder for later.

Still, one must not forget that Russia is a divided country.

Putin still has the support of a large part of the country's population.

A journalist I speak to in Penza says that her life has now become very strange because the reality she lives in is completely different from the one that people who believe in Putin live in.

- I know that I'm right, she says.

But I'm not naive.

What we are seeing now is perhaps the beginning of a democratic development that can eventually lead to Russia becoming a modern welfare society.

I'm 37 years old, so I'm not going to experience it myself.

But maybe my grandchildren.

That it will take time is obvious.