© AP
The organization of a memorial service for Russian opponent Alexei Navalny, who died in a prison camp, is being opposed by the Russian authorities, according to his team. “After a day of searching, we still haven’t found a funeral home,” said Navalny’s spokesperson Kira Jarmysch.
Some funeral homes said they were fully booked, while others rejected the request as soon as Navalny’s name was mentioned. “At one point we were told that the funeral directors were no longer allowed to work with us,” says Jarmysch.
According to authorities, Navalny died on February 16 at the age of 47. The cause is not yet known. According to prison authorities, he died after walking into a Siberian prison camp that goes by the unofficial name ‘Polarwolf’. The politician served a nineteen-year sentence there for his criticism of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
For more than a week, authorities kept his body under lock and key. They threatened to bury the body in the penal colony. Only after a plea by his mother and widow were the remains transferred to the family.
It comes as no surprise that the team is facing opposition. Authorities have already cracked down on people who openly mourned the death of President Vladimir Putin’s top critic. Hundreds of people were arrested in Russia as they laid flowers for Navalny.