Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, whose family had not heard from him for almost three weeks, is in a penal colony in Kharp in the Russian Arctic, his spokeswoman said today. “We found Navalny. He is in prison colony No. 3 in the city of Charp in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug,” Kira Iarmych wrote on X, specifying that the opponent was “doing well” and that his lawyer had visited him.
Charp, a small town of about 5,000 residents, is located in Yamal-Nenets, a remote region in northern Russia. It lies beyond the Arctic Circle and is home to several penal colonies. Alexei Navalny is serving a 19-year prison sentence for “extremism.” His family and co-workers had not heard from him since early December. According to the ruling, Navalny, who is accused of “extremism,” must serve his sentence in a “special regime” colony, a category of facilities where prison conditions are the harshest and usually reserved for life-long and most dangerous prisoners. “It was clear from the beginning that the authorities wanted to isolate Alexei, especially before the presidential elections scheduled for March 2024,” commented Ivan Jdanov, one of his close associates, to X. Transfers from a prison colony to other countries in Russia often require several weeks Train journey with stops in between, and the families of the prisoners remain without news during this time. The lack of news about the opposition leader has raised concerns in several Western capitals and at the United Nations.
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