Culture | Opposing Putin’s tyranny

In a posthumous memoir, Alexei Navalny chronicles his martyrdom

“Patriot”, by the murdered Russian opposition leader, will be seen as a historic text

Alexei Navalny takes a selfie picture with a crowd during a march in central Moscow, Russia on February 27th 2016
Photograph: Getty Images

Three and a half years before Alexei Navalny was murdered by Vladimir Putin, he was very nearly killed by him, and he described the feeling of sliding into oblivion. “It’s all lies, what they say,” he wrote. “My whole life is not flashing before my eyes. The faces of those dearest to me do not appear. Neither do angels or a dazzling light.” He sensed his brain was shutting down: “Life is draining away, and I have no will to resist...Then I died.”

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This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Alexei Navalny, written by himself”

From the October 26th 2024 edition

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