Title: The Intimidating Images of Russian Oppression: From Ksenia Karelina to Alexey Navalny
The haunting images of Russian oppression, with a young woman being led in handcuffs down a dark stairwell, serve as a chilling message to the world but not one that may have been intended by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The prisoner in question is Ksenia Karelina, a 33-year-old US-Russian dual citizen, who has been charged with treason by the Russian authorities.
The arrest of Karelina, an esthetician in Los Angeles pursuing her passion for ballet, coincides with the demise of opposition leader Alexey Navalny under mysterious circumstances in an Arctic penal colony. While Navalny openly advocated for democracy and exposed Putin’s corruption, Karelina posed no apparent threat to the Russian leader. Yet, it seems that Putin does not tolerate even the most minimal signs of opposition, let alone dissent.
The Kremlin’s attempt to assert its power and intimidate its adversaries appears to be rooted in fear rather than strength. In the past, Russians have been arrested for holding up blank pieces of paper during Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, and thousands more were jailed for protesting Russia’s aggression.
Karelina’s alleged crime was donating a mere $51.80 to Razom, a US charity that supports Ukraine. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) confirmed her arrest for providing financial assistance to a foreign state, which allegedly threatened Russia’s Website security. If convicted of treason, she could face decades in a Russian prison.
Karelina became a US citizen in 2021. Her boyfriend, Chris Van Heerden, told media that she was apolitical and had nothing to do with the war. She visited Russia for her 90-year-old grandmother’s birthday, unaware that her actions would be perceived as a threat to Putin’s regime.
Perhaps, Putin is growing increasingly insecure and becoming more tyrannical not just toward the Russian people but also visitors and even those who have left the country. What started as an authoritarian leader eroding democratic norms now seems to be morphing into a totalitarian dictator, who is not only suppressing dissent at home but also targeting critics abroad.
Russian authorities have arrested Russians questioning the war in Ukraine and those seeking to honor Navalny, even those trying to lay flowers in his memory. Some of Putin’s most vocal critics have died under mysterious circumstances, including opposition leader Boris Nemtsov and journalist and human rights advocate Anna Politkovskaya. Navalny’s cause of death remains unclear, but his influence could not be silenced as long as he was alive.
Russia has become one of the top perpetrators of transnational repression, according to Freedom House. Putin’s regime relies heavily on assassination as a tool to eliminate critics and perceived enemies, whether they are in Russia or abroad.
The arrest of Ksenia Karelina is only the latest example of Putin’s regime’s repressive tactics, which involve lowering the threshold for what they tolerate and raising the bar for how they respond. A donation to a pro-Ukrainian charity now amounts to treason, punishable by 20 years in prison. Criticism of the war or Putin can lead to death in a Russian prison camp.
The Kremlin’s actions are not just a threat to Russian citizens and foreign visitors but also pose a challenge to the international community, which must hold Putin accountable for his regime’s human rights violations, aggression against Ukraine, and transnational repression. As the world watches the situation unfold, it is essential to remember that silence in the face of tyranny only emboldens Putin’s regime and perpetuates its cycle of repression.
