The main political news for Russia and the part of the world watching it yesterday was the return of Alexei Navalny to Russia, followed by his predictable arrest immediately upon arrival. But Navalny has also become a hot topic among Muslims on social media in recent days, after several Muslim bloggers accused him and he responded to one of them.
In this regard, we would like to say the following. We have repeatedly strongly criticized Navalny for his statements regarding Islam and Muslims. Anyone who wants to verify this can use the search function on our website and enter the word «Navalny» in the top right corner to see what has been written about him on «Voice of Islam,» especially in recent years.
This criticism was made when the authorities were playing games with Navalny while jailing Muslim public figures, which he and his colleagues in the Russian opposition ignored. But why have some Muslim figures and bloggers now launched an attack against Navalny? Has he again made some statement concerning Islam and Muslims? Nothing is known about that. So what is the reason for these attacks on Navalny? No one has given a clear answer to this question.
That is why he inadvertently raises the question himself, taking into account the biased involvement of the initiators of this campaign, from whom some naive Muslim social activists later took their lead. And the reason is obvious — it is Navalny’s return to Russia. By the way, the return and arrest of a person who survived a severe poisoning and an attempt on his life, which could have easily been avoided, was completely ignored by pro-government propagandists. It is clear that if he had asked for political asylum, it would have been granted without hesitation, instead of being extradited at the Kremlin’s request. Those who wanted to prevent his return by deliberately announcing him as wanted in advance are well known. Regardless of people’s wishes (which vary from person to person), Muslim figures and bloggers who joined the anti-Navalny campaign became supporters of those who needed such a campaign at that time.
Now, as for the attitude of Muslims to Navalny. Right now, just at the right time, allegations are being made against him that we wrote about before, when he was not a significant threat to the current regime. And all these claims are used as evidence to conclude that «Navalny is an enemy of Muslims» or, in a more moderate form, «Navalny is no better than Putin for Muslims. Let’s talk about this.
First of all, those who say that Navalny or anyone else is no better than Putin for them fall into two categories for two reasons. Either they are open or secret supporters of Putin, who actually satisfies them. Or they are people who, even if Putin does not satisfy them, will never do anything to bring about someone who is «better than Putin».
Second, if we seriously consider who can or cannot be «better than Putin» for Muslims, the correct answer to this question is «nobody. Not because Muslims like Putin or his policies, but because the source of these policies is not a specific person, but the entire system that he represents and leads.
But what is the problem with this system? Those who take the maximalist approach will say that the problem lies in the fact that it is a system of infidelity or foreign domination over Muslim nations. We will return to this approach later, but for now let’s start by examining the alternatives within Russia. In our view, the three key problems, especially for Muslims, are as follows:
1) Its repressive, authoritarian, and almost totalitarian nature and the suppression of any dissent, anything that goes beyond the dominant ideology;
2) The concentration of power in one set of hands and the exclusion of political competition and opposition influence;
3) The complete deprivation of autonomy of the regions and their subordination to the center.
If we look at the situation from this perspective, we will see that for Muslims, who are a minority in this country, it is not fundamentally important who leads such a system, but rather what its nature is. Because as long as this system remains in place, even if a person who truly loves Muslims comes to power, he will either not be able to change the realities of this system or, even if he succeeds during his tenure, everything will eventually return to its original state. And conversely — for example, the outgoing US President Donald Trump has made anti-Islamic statements several times, and the current British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has done so several times as well. However, the systems in these countries protect the rights of Muslims in general, with independent courts, free media, civil society, political competition, and representation. In such a situation, what the head of state says or thinks today or tomorrow is not so critical. Even in a country as Islamophobic as Serbia, after the fall of the dictator Slobodan Milosevic and on its way to joining the EU, not only are the rights of Muslim religious organizations protected, but Muslims in the Sandzak region have autonomy. They have their own political parties, elect politicians who sit in the Serbian parliament and discuss with Serbian politicians to defend their interests.
Now let’s get back to Navalny specifically. Do we want him to replace Putin tomorrow? Again, the answer is no. But does he want that? Only Allah knows what he really wants, but at least he is currently expressing something completely different. For example, if we look at his recent hour-long interview with economist Sergei Guriev, who happens to be an ethnic Ossetian and who asked him uncomfortable questions about the national question, we can see something else there (https://youtu.be/5jf-F-AmCKc). In it, Navalny expresses his vision for the future of Russia after the current regime is overthrown: the release of political prisoners, political freedom, judicial reform to eliminate corruption and make it independent, the transfer of most powers from the president to the parliament, and the transfer of most powers from the center to the regions and local authorities.
Now, let every Muslim who is not a supporter of the current regime ask himself and say — is this better for us than what we have now or not? Our answer is clear — yes. And this means that our goals are the same not only as Navalny’s, but also as those of anyone who aspires to the same thing. Does that mean we should vote for him or his party? No, it doesn’t. First, because under this system they will not be allowed to run or win. Secondly, because when and if this system changes, it will only be when it becomes possible not only to vote for Navalny and his party, but also to create new parties. Only then will the conditions be created for the emergence of a party and politicians who defend the interests of Muslims, and for people to vote for them. And even if Navalny or his party wins the elections, the new system will be structured in such a way that the voices of the opposition will be heard and the rights of minorities will be protected.
Now let’s address those who believe that Muslim peoples cannot have a future in Russia without an Islamic state. As for the second point, we will not hide our position — despite the attractiveness of this ideal, all attempts to implement it in recent years have shown that Muslims, in their current state, are not particularly capable of achieving it. They have achieved the best results where they have combined their devotion to Islamic values with the advantages of modern political and economic systems, including the recognition of international law. Yes, within the framework of the latter, it is theoretically possible to create new states for Muslim peoples based on the principle of the right of nations to self-determination. However, as experience shows, such states were created only in the territories of the Russian Empire as a result of revolutions in the center. Moreover, this did not happen to everyone and not immediately — some succeeded, others did not. The reasons for these failures also require serious reflection, because without it they will repeat themselves. But when it did happen, it was still preceded by a revolution in Russia, because there were no preconditions for it in the existing imperial dictatorship.
Thus, both Muslim peoples and communities who understand that they have no alternative to development within Russia, as well as those who choose their own path, are interested in replacing the current regime in Russia with something fundamentally different. Navalny is also interested in this now, if only because under this regime he has no chance not only for a political future, but even for freedom. The same goes for the many Muslim prisoners of conscience who, let’s be honest, will not be released under this regime, and if they are, they will soon be imprisoned again.
So, who are our goals right now — Navalny or the current regime? And whose side should our sympathies be on at this moment?