Russia: Opposition activists to protest in cities nationwide Jan. 23

Event

Supporters of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny plan to protest in urban centers throughout Russia Jan. 23. The purpose of the action is to denounce Russian authority's recent detention of Navalny on what they argue are politically motivated charges and to demand his immediate release. The actions have primarily been organized by a group called "Team Navalny." The largest protest will likely take place in Moscow, where organizers have called for a march from Pushkin Square to Manezhnaya Square beginning at 1400. Attendance could exceed 1,000. Additional protests, often involving a march, have been confirmed at the following locations:

• Chelyabinsk: Slava Boulevard beginning at 1300

• Kazan: Bauman Street beginning 1400

• Krasnoyarsk: Red Square beginning at 1400

• Nizhny Novgorod: October Cinema on Bolshaya Pokrovskaya to Minin and Pozharsky Square beginning at 1400

• Novosibirsk: Officers House to Lenin Square beginning at 1400

• Omsk: Leningradskaya Square beginning at 1400

• Perm: Komsomolskaya Square beginning at 1400

• Rostov-on-Don: Don Public Library to Gorky Park beginning at 1400

• Saint Petersburg: Senate Square beginning at 1400

• Samara: 21st Army Heroes Square beginning at 1400

• Ufa: State Concert Hall beginning at 1400

• Volgograd: Simbirtsev Square beginning at 1400

• Voronezh: Platonovsky Square beginning at 1400

• Yekaterinburg: Square in front of Dynamo Stadium beginning at 1400

Further protests are planned in more towns and cities nationwide Jan. 23; participation will vary by location but will likely be in the hundreds at larger actions. Furthermore, smaller sporadic protests over this issue are likely in various locations Jan. 19 through at least Jan. 25. Likely protest locations include central squares and thoroughfares, outside government offices, and outside the Matrosskaya Tishina detention center in Moscow, where Navalny is currently being held.

Authorities have not granted permission for any of the planned protests; furthermore, current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) measures in Russia restrict public gatherings. Additional police will almost certainly deploy to all actions. Crowd-control measures, including possible movement restrictions, could prompt localized transport disruptions. Security forces may attempt to disperse activists forcibly who attempt to gather for the protests, possibly through the use of riot control measures such as tear gas. Noncompliant individuals could face arrest. While bystanders are unlikely to be directly targeted they would face a significant indirect physical threat.

Context

Alexei Navalny is a prominent opposition figure in Russia and an outspoken critic of the current Putin government. Supporters claim he has long been the target of politically motivated criminal charges directed against him by Russian authorities. He has spent the previous five months in Germany recovering after being poisoned with a nerve agent while traveling in Russia Aug. 20, 2020 in what Navalny alleges was a state-directed assassination attempt against him.

Navalny returned to Russia Jan. 17 and was immediately detained by authorities on arrival at Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport (SVO) for parole violations during his recovery in Germany. He is to remain in detention for at least 30 days; a hearing currently scheduled for Feb. 2 could see him sentenced to over three years in prison. Supporters maintain all such charges are politically motivated. Multiple human rights organizations and governments have criticized Navalny's arrest and called for his immediate release. Regular protests over this issue are likely through at least mid-February, and large actions are likely following any significant developments, such as confirmed prison sentences.

Advice

Avoid all protests as a routine security precaution and to mitigate associated disruptions. Heed instructions from security services and leave the area at the first sign of a confrontation. Check local media sources for information on actions not listed above. Check public transport schedules and local traffic conditions for disruptions in protest areas before travel Jan. 23.