Alexey Navalny, the Russian opposition leader and outspoken critic of the Kremlin, who died today in prison, in a CNN documentary in 2022, has shown his message in a possible scenario if he is killed.
In the film, director Daniel Roher asks Navalny what message he would like to leave to the Russian people if he were to be killed.
"My message for the situation when I am killed is very simple: don't give up," Navalny said in English.
Roher then asked him to answer in Russian.
"I have something very clear to tell you. You are not allowed to surrender," said Navalny. "If they decide to kill me, it means that we are too strong. We must use this power, not give up, remember that we are a great power that is being oppressed by these evil people.
"We don't realize how strong we really are. The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. So don't be inactive.”
Roher later told CNN's David Rind on the Tug of War podcast why he asked Navalny to switch languages.
"I thought the power of that was quite significant and symbolic, because he's now in prison in a gulag outside of Moscow," Roher said. "Let the last word of this potential president be for his people."
A clear and brave message from @navalny in case the regime should kill him. pic.twitter.com/zOEoFZheEG
— Carl Bildt (@carlbildt) February 16, 2024