AI strips Navalny of ‘prisoner of conscience’ status

Moscow: Amnesty International said on Wednesday that it no longer recognises jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny as a prisoner of conscience because of past “advocacy of hatred” comments but vowed to still push for his release.

Navalny’s arrest at a Moscow airport in January sparked widespread condemnation from rights groups in Russia and abroad as well as from Western leaders who are expected to impose sanctions on Moscow in response. But Amnesty said it took the decision to rescind his status of prisoner of conscience “in relation to comments he made in the past.”

The London-based activist group did not cite any specific remarks made by Navalny, but he triggered criticism with anti-immigrant statements at the beginning of his political career more than a decade ago.