Today, Russia has sentenced four journalists, allegedly linked to the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, to five and a half years in a penal colony, amplifying the ongoing crackdown on press freedom and critics of the Kremlin.
Mr. Navalny, who was the primary opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was declared an “extremist” by Russian authorities, a designation that persists despite his death on February 16, 2024, in an Arctic penal colony.
Prior to launching its offensive in Ukraine in 2022, Moscow also labeled Mr. Navalny’s organizations as “extremist” and has aggressively pursued individuals it suspects of having ties to him.
A judge sentenced the journalists—Antonina Kravtsova, Konstantin Gabov, Sergei Karelin, and Artem Kriger—all of whom reported on Navalny, to “five years and six months in a general-regime penal colony,” as reported by an AFP journalist.
The trial was conducted in secret at the Nagatinsky district court in Moscow, with only the sentencing part open to the media, a pattern that has become standard for political cases in Russia amid its offensive in Ukraine.
Supporters cheered and applauded as the defendants were brought in.
Since Mr. Navalny’s still-mysterious death in an Arctic prison last year, Russian authorities have intensively targeted his family and associates.
In January, three lawyers who defended him in court received sentences of several years in prison.
Moscow has also intensified its years-long crackdown on independent media during its military actions in Ukraine.
Shortly after initiating military operations in Ukraine in 2022, Moscow enacted broad censorship laws that prohibit criticism of its armed forces, leading most independent media in the country to flee.
‘Pay with my freedom’
The journalists convicted today denied the allegations of being linked to an extremist organization.
Ms. Kravtsova, 34, a photographer with the independent outlet SOTAvision, uses the pseudonym Antonina Favorskaya.
She covered Mr. Navalny’s trials for two years and recorded his final court appearance via video link just two days before his death.
Video journalists Mr. Gabov and Mr. Karelin are accused of preparing visual materials for Mr. Navalny’s social media platforms.
Both have collaborated with international media outlets at different points—Mr. Gabov with Reuters and Mr. Karelin with the Associated Press and Deutsche Welle.
Mr. Kriger, 24, the youngest among the accused, reported on political trials and protests for SOTAvision.
After the verdict, he declared in court: “Everything will be fine. Everything will change. Those who sentenced me will be sitting here instead of me.”
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in an Arctic prison last year.
In their final statements, released by independent media, the journalists condemned the charges against them and the status of press freedom in Russia.
“Engaging in independent journalism is now equated with extremism,” Mr. Gabov remarked in his concluding statement to the court, as reported by the Meduza site.
Mr. Kriger expressed to the court: “I did not wish to run away and live in fear; I wanted to affirm that practicing journalism in Russia is possible and necessary,” according to a transcript from SOTAvision.
“If I must pay for that belief with my freedom or my life, I am prepared to do so,” he stated.
