[ad_1]
Navalny said he was forced to watch national television while in prison and condemned the “information culture” and continued control.
Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny accepted his first interview in prison, comparing it to a Chinese labor camp and saying that he was forced to watch eight hours of national television and propaganda every day piece.
The 45-year-old Russian opposition figure told the New York Times in an interview published on Wednesday that the days of heavy labor in the Soviet Gulag are over-replaced by what he called brainwashing and propaganda “psychological violence.” .
Navalny was held in a prison with the highest security level in Pokrov, 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Moscow.
Navalny said in an interview: “You might imagine a muscular man with a steel tooth tattoo continuing to fight with a knife in order to get the best crib by the window.”
“You need to imagine a Chinese labor camp, everyone lined up with cameras hanging around. There is a culture of continuous control and whistleblowing.”
He said that when they watched the state propaganda for several hours, the guards would monitor them, not allow them to read or write, and wake the prisoners if they fell asleep.
But Navalny remains optimistic about the future of Vladimir Putin’s rule, insisting that it will end one day.
“Sooner or later, this error will be corrected and Russia will embark on a democratic European development path. Just because that is what people want,” he said.
He also repeatedly criticized the sanctions imposed by the US and European governments on Russia, saying that it hurts the Russian people rather than those in power.
He said that he was not beaten by other prisoners and even said that it was “fun” to make snacks with them.
Imprisonment
Navalny has not remained silent since his imprisonment in March. He issued a letter from prison and managed several social media posts, but the interview with The Times was his first time since his imprisonment.
It is said that a total of 54 handwritten pages with Nawalny’s answers have been delivered to reporters. His press spokesman Kira Yarmysh confirmed on Twitter that this was his first interview since his detention.
Western intelligence agencies assessed with “high confidence” that FSB officials poisoned Navalny with the nerve agent Novijok last year.
The dissident flew to Germany for treatment, but returned stubbornly to Russia in January and was arrested and sent to exile.
According to the verdict in a court case brought by him, he violated Russia’s parole requirements during his stay in Germany. The judgment has been widely criticized internationally, and it is considered to be politically motivated.
The Kremlin denied poisoning Navalny and insisted that his imprisonment was not political.
This month, he was charged with a new crime that could extend his jail time by three years. If found guilty, he can only be released after 2024 (the year Russia plans to hold presidential elections).
Prior to Russia’s parliamentary poll in September, his movement was under unprecedented pressure, and Putin’s United Russia Party is expected to be in trouble.
[ad_2]
Source link