Highlights: Navalny's funeral: "Russian power shows nervousness despite the 'absence' of opposition" Thousands of people bid farewell to Alexei Navalny at his funeral in Moscow on Friday March 1, despite warnings from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. According to Françoise Daucé, director of studies at the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences and specialist in Russia, the protest movement can resurface. Interview conducted by Romain Lemaresquier. Also listen to EUROPEAN OF THE WEEK – Yulia Navalnaya: The natural heir of Alexeï Navalny.

Thousands of people bid farewell to Alexei Navalny at his funeral in Moscow on Friday March 1, despite warnings from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who had…

Navalny's funeral: "Russian power shows nervousness despite the 'absence' of opposition"

Thousands of people bid farewell to Alexei Navalny at his funeral in Moscow on Friday March 1, despite warnings from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov who warned of potential sanctions for participating in any demonstrations. say “

unauthorized

”.

According to Françoise Daucé, director of studies at the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences and specialist in Russia, the protest movement can resurface.

Interview conducted by Romain Lemaresquier.

Under a heavy police presence, thousands of people bid farewell to Alexei Navalny at his funeral in Moscow on March 1, following his unexplained death two weeks ago in an Arctic penal colony.

By: RFI Follow

RFI: Several thousand supporters and Russian citizens came to pay their last respects to Alexei Navalny, the Kremlin's main critic, who died in murky circumstances in an Arctic prison two weeks ago.

Did you expect this mobilization?

Françoise Daucé:

It is true that in a context of very strong repression of all political opposition, the very massive presence of Russian citizens who came to pay tribute to Navalny is very impressive.

It shows that they braved danger to come and pay their last respects to Navalny.

In fact, it's almost a surprise.

Since February 2022 and the start of Russia's massive aggression against Ukraine, we have not seen this type of mobilization or public gathering in support of the opposition.

Beyond the physical presence around the Church and at the cemetery to pay tribute to Navalny, the number of people who followed the ceremony online is impressive.

If we look at the Navalny team channel on YouTube, almost four million people followed the ceremony.

This demonstrates the large number of people who followed this ceremony, both on site and online.

Does this mobilization demonstrate that the work started by Alexeï Navalny can ultimately continue?

We should perhaps return to the action of Alexeï Navalny, over the past ten years, in Russian society, between 2012 and 2022. It is true that he has led an important opposition movement, both in the capitals, in Moscow, in Saint Petersburg, but also throughout the country.

And in fact, seeing the people marching at his grave today, who were quite ordinary people, we see how the movement that he started had a transformative effect in Russian society.

This movement was embodied by his person, by himself.

But in fact, he still relied on an activist network and his anti-corruption foundation.

So, it is true that some of the leaders of this movement are today in exile, because the threats weighing against them are very serious.

But at the same time, we see that in the long term, and perhaps not in the near future, this movement which was created, or in any case this socialization towards political protest may possibly resurface.

Does Moscow fear a challenge?

The Kremlin has destroyed

all institutional opposition

for many years.

There is no longer any opposition established in the country.

Opposition political parties were liquidated.

In Parliament, only parties loyal to power are allowed to participate.

We can clearly see that around Vladimir Putin, the candidates who are running are candidates who have been validated by the system and who are loyal to the regime.

Objectively, from an institutional point of view, we do not see any political opposition that could overshadow the Head of State, particularly during these famous elections.

What is striking is to see the energy that is emitted by this regime to control all forms of criticism that can be expressed in society.

We can clearly see the permanent deployment of these surveillance and population control services which will repress even the most symbolic forms of protest.

So, this gap between on the one hand the absence of institutionalized opposition, and on the other this energy which is put into trying to control everything in the country.

This nevertheless testifies to a form of nervousness of this power, which clearly senses that contrary opinions, and perhaps contrary winds, are blowing in society.

Also listen EUROPEAN OF THE WEEK – Yulia Navalnaya: the natural heir of Alexeï Navalny

Navalny's funeral: "Russian power shows nervousness despite the 'absence' of opposition"

Navalny's funeral: "Russian power shows nervousness despite the 'absence' of opposition"

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