Russia - France condemns the sentencing of Aleksei Navalny and the confirmation of Memorial’s liquidation and applauds the courage of the Russian civil society activists who are being unjustly persecuted and sentenced for their ideas (23 Mar. 2022)

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We strongly condemn the nine-year prison sentence and 1.2 million ruble fine imposed against the opposition figure and anti-corruption activist Aleksei Navalny by Moscow’s Lefortovo court on March 22.

The Russian authorities’ decision attests to the legal harassment of Mr. Navalny, his family and his close collaborators. The arrest of Mr. Navalny’s lawyers, Olga Mikhailova et Vadim Kobzev, following the trial is highly concerning and demonstrates the pressure that is being exercised against the defense.

We maintain that Mr. Navalny did not receive a fair trial and does not belong in prison. Once again, we call on the Russian authorities to release him.

We likewise condemn the decision by the Russian Federation’s Supreme Court to reject a request to delay the liquidation of the NGO Memorial International.

We applaud the courage of Mr. Navalny, the members of Memorial and all the civil society activists in Russia who are being unjustly persecuted and sentenced for their ideas.