Russian president Putin asks Russian president Putin in one open letter for adequate medical assistance for the imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The letter was published today in a number of European newspapers. “As a Russian citizen, he has the right to have himself examined and treated by a doctor of his choice,” read the appeal.
The call has been signed by five Nobel laureates such as JM Coetzee, Orhan Pamuk and Svetlana Alexeyevich, other writers such as JK Rowling and Salman Rushdie, historians Simon Schama and Orlando Figes, journalists David Remnick and Anne Applebaum, actors Jude Law and Ralph Fiennes and former Abba member Björn Ulvaeus.
Navalny is in the infirmary of the prison camp where he is being held, some 100 kilometers east of Moscow. On March 30 he went on a hunger strike because he had physical complaints and was not allowed to be checked by an independent doctor. He suffers from back pain, fever, cough and numbness in the arms and legs. His personal physician, who previously traveled to the camp to visit him, was arrested at the entrance.
The signatories urge Putin to act quickly given Navalny’s urgent situation. “It is up to you, chosen by the Russians as protector and enforcer of the law, to see that he gets that help.”
‘Extremist group’
It was also announced today that the Russian Public Prosecution Service wants to qualify Navalny’s political movement and its Anti-Corruption Foundation as an extremist group, a prelude to a final ban. According to the OM, Navalny’s movement wants to undermine the constitutional order, as do organizations such as al-Qaeda, IS and the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Navalny has been President Putin’s main critic and challenger for years, but his movement does not advocate armed insurrection or revolution. At the beginning of this year, Navalny was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison for violating the rules of a previous suspended sentence and for insulting a war veteran.
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