Russia on Wednesday lifted a criminal conviction for opposition politician Alexei Navalny after a European Court of Human Rights ruling — but said he must now face a fresh trial.
The ruling concerns the 2013 conviction of the high-profile anti-corruption whistleblower and Kremlin critic and co-accused businessman Pyotr Ofitserov for embezzlement.
After a long-running trial in the central Russian city of Kirov, Navalny received a five-year suspended sentence over a 2009 deal with a state timber company.
The European court ruled in February that the men were deprived of a fair trial and found guilty over “acts indistinguishable from regular commercial activities.”
It told Russia to pay damages of 8,000 euros ($8,600) to each defendant and cover legal costs.
In Wednesday’s decision, Russia’s Supreme Court overthrew the men’s convictions but sent their case back for retrial.
Navalny had hoped that the court would simply close the case and reacted with frustration at the ruling.
The Supreme Court “practically refused to fulfill the ECHR decision. They did not close the case but sent it back for a new hearing,” he wrote on Twitter.
He said the ruling was made “so I can’t take part in politics and do my investigations,” although lawyers said he is now eligible to stand in elections.
Source: AFP
