Posting on Instagram for Valentine's Day to my wife
Navalny's wife: "Putin government will be punished"
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny (47) is reported to have left a final social media post expressing love to his wife on Valentine's Day before his death in prison.
On the 16th (local time), The New York Times (NYT) reported that Navalny had been posting messages on social media through lawyers who visited him in prison.
The most recent post was uploaded on Instagram two days before his death, on the 14th, and was a message to his wife, Yulia Navalnaya, in celebration of Valentine's Day.
In the post, Navalny wrote, "Though we may be separated by blue blizzards and great distances, I feel you by my side every moment and love you even more."
Navalny, who founded the Anti-Corruption Foundation in 2011, led anti-government movements by exposing corruption among high-ranking Russian officials and was considered President Vladimir Putin's greatest rival. The organizations he established, including the Anti-Corruption Foundation, the Foundation for the Protection of Citizens' Rights, and the Navalny Headquarters, were designated as "extremist organizations" by Russian authorities.
Navalny was sentenced to over 30 years in prison on charges including illegal acquisition of funds, extremist activities, and fraud. He had been serving his sentence since January 2021 and died suddenly on the 16th at the No. 3 prison in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the northernmost Siberian region of Russia.
The Russian Federal Prison Service stated on the 16th that "Navalny was in poor condition after a walk and lost consciousness almost immediately." Medical staff performed emergency measures but confirmed Navalny's death and said they are investigating the exact cause according to procedures.
In response, Navalny's associates expressed suspicion over the sudden news of his death just a month before the presidential election (March 15?17), in which President Putin is expected to win a fifth term, stating that "his health had been good recently."
Meanwhile, Yulia Navalnaya reportedly received the news of her husband's death while attending the Munich Security Conference in Germany, protesting Navalny's unjust imprisonment and criticizing the Russian government.
She said, "Because Putin and his government constantly lie, I cannot be sure of my husband's death," but added, "If he is truly dead, they will be punished for what they have done to our country, my family, and my husband."
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