The Daunting Task Facing Navalny’s Widow

livemint.com:

After Alexei Navalny recovered from poisoning in 2020, his wife Yulia Navalnaya was asked whether her husband should give up his role as Russia’s most prominent opposition figure. “No," she said, without pause. “I fully support Alexei’s work, sincerely.

Leaving it half done isn’t how you do it." When Navalny died in a Russian prison in the Arctic last week, Navalnaya, who had largely stayed in her husband’s shadow, vowed to complete his mission. With her white-blonde hair and dark-blue dress, Navalnaya cut a ghostly figure at a dimly lit table as she promised to succeed her husband, who for years was subjected to what she called sham trials, prison sentences and poisoning as he vociferously challenged Russian President Vladimir Putin. Harnessing an outpouring of support and the resources Navalny built through his Anti-Corruption Foundation, or FBK, Navalnaya wants to spearhead renewed efforts to undermine Putin’s rule.

“Putin killed half of me, but my other half won’t give up," she said in the 9-minute video statement Monday, casting herself in the league of women who fought on in fierce political battles after their husbands died. But the going will be tough. The Kremlin’s stringent laws against dissent have enfeebled Russia’s opposition, while Putin’s opponents, including those in exile, have been shot, poisoned or strangled, making the president appear unassailable.