Russia slams Navalny documentary calls out Oscars for 'politicising the issue'

After artists and filmmakers from around the world celebrated cinema at the 95th Academy Awards, Russia condemned the awarding of the Navalny documentary. On Sunday, the Academy Awards popularly known as the Oscars awarded the 2022 documentary with the Best Documentary Feature Film Award. The thought-provoking documentary detailed the 2020 assassination attempt of Russian opposition leader and former Presidential candidate Alexei Navalny. Following the announcement on Monday, the Press Secretary of the President of Russia, Dimitry Peskov condemned the move and stated that awarding the movie is a “politicisation of Oscars”, Tass reported.

"I cannot judge the documentary’s qualities because I haven’t seen it," the Kremlin spokesperson told the Russian reporters on Tuesday. "However, even though I haven’t seen it, I dare say that there is an element of politicization of the issue. Hollywood sometimes does not hesitate to politicize its work, so such things happen. Still, I wouldn’t talk about the cinematic merits of the film," he added as per the report by Tass. The remarks from the Russian Press Secretary came when he was asked about how the Kremlin feels about Daniel Roher’s recent victory. The Russian opposition leader is still in jail in Russia and has been kept in isolation for a very long time. In 2020, Navalny rose to prominence when he expressed his intention to run for the Russian Presidency against the current Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

Navalny’s wife received the award

In the Sunday event, Navalny’s two children and her wife Yulia attended the ceremony which took place in Los Angeles, USA. The family of the Russian opposition leader also joined the director of the documentary on stage to accept the award. “My husband is in prison just for telling the truth, my husband is in prison just for defending democracy,” Yulia Navalnaya said on Sunday. “Alexei, I am dreaming about the day you will be free, and our country will be free. Stay strong, my love,” she added. The Russian blogger turned political activist was sent to a “maximum-security prison,” which was about 120 kilometres east of Moscow. Navalny was arrested upon returning to the Russian capital in January 2021. The 2022 oscar-winning documentary followed the political rise of the Russian politician, who slowly became Putin’s most-prominent opposition. In the acceptance speech, director Daniel Roher dedicated the award to Navalny and all the other political prisoners from around the world.“Alexei, the world has not forgotten your vital message to us all,” Roher said. “We cannot, we must not be afraid to oppose dictators and authoritarianism wherever it rears its head,” he added. Filmmaker Shaunak Sen’s documentary, “All That Breathes” was also nominated for the same category.