DISINFO: Navalny compared Muslims to cockroaches and urged to kill them
SUMMARY
When the media icon compared the Muslims of the Caucasus to ... cockroaches. A fact little highlighted in the mainstream narrative, Alexei Navalny was, before acquiring an international aura, close to far-right movements. He then posted videos combining black humor and racism. In one of them, still online on his official YouTube account, the one who is often presented - wrongly - as the "main opponent" to Vladimir Putin compared the inhabitants of the Caucasus, mostly Muslims, to cockroaches and suggested to 'use "guns" against them.
RESPONSE
This is part of a larger pro-Kremlin campaign to smear Alexey Navalny.
The video RT refers to was filmed in 2007, at the time when Navalny сo-founded a national democratic movement "People", then participant to the liberal "March of opposition". This project did not actually take place, but the movement's manifesto is still available online. It says, in particular: “The ruling regime destroying Russia is trying to use patriotic sentiments for its own purposes. On the other hand, national provocateurs undermine the state with xenophobia and calls for violence against "foreigners".
The 2007 video entitled "People is for pistols' legalization", which RT interprets as a comparison of Caucasians with cockroaches and a call to kill them, is in fact an agitation for the legalisation of short-barreled firearms, another point in the movement People's manifesto. It says that slippers help against flies and cockroaches, and a pistol is needed against "homosapiens arbitrarius". The meaning of the statement is clear: weapons are required to protect against criminals. There are no words about Muslims, Caucasians or any other representatives of other ethnic or religious groups. Arms are suggested to be used only in response to initial aggression of some armed criminals.
The fact that the video is still available online suggests that the Russian authorities did not see in it “calls for the murder of Muslims,” otherwise it would have been blocked and Navalny brought to justice. It is impossible to "call for the murder of Muslims" in Russia with impunity.
Background: Navalny was was stripped of his "prisoner of conscience" status by Amnesty International after an RT columnist accused him, in particular, of "calling for the murder of Muslims" and Amnesty International received numerous similar requests to verify this information. Prankers also called the secretary of the organization under the guise of Navalny's ally. Amnesty International is conducting an additional check while denying to having taking into account the Kremlin´s propaganda.
'Amnesty used the term POC following Navalny’s arrest to emphasize the unjust nature of his detention and our opposition to his unfounded prosecution. Our position on these reprehensible actions by the Russian authorities has not changed.
Concerns were subsequently raised within the Amnesty movement over the reference to Navalny as a POC given that Navalny had, in the past, made comments which may have amounted to advocacy of hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, violence or hostility.
Amnesty decided to re-examine the case and conducted a thorough review of the evidence base. After painstaking consideration, we concluded that we had made a mistake in our initial determination. In making that determination, we had focused solely on the circumstances surrounding Navalny’s unjust arrest and detention, and given insufficient weight to some of his previous comments which, as far as Amnesty is aware, have not been publicly renounced,' says Amnesty International.
Talking to journalists and writers, Navalny addressed his previous nationalism engagements many times, assuring, in particular, that he believes that all people are equal on Earth and anybody who believes the opposite is "dangerous".
Alexey Navalny was given the prize of The Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy.
Navalny was poisoned by nerve agent Novichok in Russia in August 2020, as OPCW has established. Upon survival after having passed several weeks in a coma, Navalny has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for violating parole from a 2014 sentence and is facing further jail time as the government presses new charges. On 16 February 2021 the ECHR decided to indicate to the Government of Russia, under Rule 39 of the Rules of Court, to release the applicant. The ECHR had regard to the nature and extent of risk to the applicant’s life.