The Russian government is initiating legal action against Navalny's legal counselors.
Persistently, Russia goes after anyone backing its prominent opposition figure, Alexei Navalny, who passed away nearly seven months ago. Currently, three of his former lawyers are undergoing trial for supposed affiliations with an extremist organization. These lawyers, Vadim Kobsev, Igor Sergunin, and Alexei Lipzer, were arrested in October 2023, viewed by observers as an attempt by the Russian authorities to intensify the squeeze on Navalny's criticisms of the Kremlin. The trial took place on a Thursday in the city of Petushki, approximately 100 kilometers east of Moscow.
Navalny's supporters claim that the authorities accuse the three defendants of passing Navalny's correspondence during his imprisonment to his team. Russian authorities banned Navalny's organizations and classified them as extremist groups back in 2021, thereby enabling the prosecution of anyone associated with these groups.
Lawyers serve as the sole connection to the outside world
The globally recognized critic of the Kremlin was detained in January 2021 upon his return to Russia, sentenced to a cumulative total of 19 years in prison, and charged with various offenses, including extremism. Navalny and his associates contended that all charges brought against him were politically motivated. Navalny tragically passed away in February 2024 at the age of 47 in a secluded Siberian prison camp.
Navalny's team and his widow, Yulia Navalnaya, accuse the Russian government of homicide and suspect that President Putin orchestrated his demise. The authorities deny these allegations.
Lawyers are the only means of communication with the outside world for numerous prisoners in Russia. They are the only ones allowed to visit their clients in remote prison camps, deliver messages, and update relatives on the prisoner's health status.
Despite the Russian authorities' classification of Navalny's organizations as extremist groups, violating human rights, the lawyers serve as the sole connection to the outside world for numerous prisoners like Navalny's former lawyers. The ongoing trial of Vadim Kobsev, Igor Sergunin, and Alexei Lipzer is a clear infringement on their right to a fair trial, as enshrined in international human rights law.
