Washington Post columnist Vladimir Kara-Murza got arrested outside his apartment in Moscow for criticizing Russian president, Putin.
Vladimir Kara-Murza is a well-known Russian opposition politician as well as a journalist. Moreover, he is the vice-chairman of an NGO called Open Russia, which serves civil society and democracy in Russia.
From 2015 to 2016, Kara-Murza worked for the People’s Freedom Party as deputy leader. Nonetheless, he is also a filmmaker who has served in two documentaries namely Nemtsov, and They Chose Freedom (2005).
In April 2004, Vladimir Kara-Murza was appointed at RTVi television network as the Washinton bureau chief. However, he quit the job after holding the post for seven years till 1st September 2012.
Why Was Washington Post Columnist Vladimir Kara-Murza Arrested In Moscow?
Washington Post columnist Vladimir Kara-Murza had been arrested in Moscow on charges of disobeying police orders, as reported by his longtime lawyer, Vadim Prokhorov.
So far now, it was not uncovered if Kara-Murza’s arrest was associated with his opposition to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
On the same day of his arrest, CNN released an interview in which he appeared to call Putin’s regime “a regime of murderers” and anticipated that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would lead to the Russian president’s deterioration.
Kara-Murza is popularly known for falling fatally ill on two poisonings occasions, in 2015 and 2017 in Moscow with symptoms consistent with poisoning, said opposition leader Boriz Nemtsov.
Where Is Vladimir Kara-Murza Now?
Vladimir Kara-Murza is currently in police custody after his arrest outside his home. He was pronounced to a 15 days in jail by the Khamovniki district court in Moscow on 12th April 2022.
Kara-Murz’s advocate, Vadim Prokhorov stated, that the police at the hearing said that the politician “behaved inappropriately after seeing police officers, change the trajectory of his movement, began moving faster, ignored the demand to stop asked by officers, and tried to escape.”
Lawyer Prokhorov denied the police statement, saying that Kara-Murza was encounterd by officers at the entrance of his apartment block and they arrested him right after he stepped out of his vehicle.
Meanwhile, Kara-Murz’s wife Evgenia Kara-Murza, appealed for his immediate release in a tweet late Monday, she writes, “Twice have the Russian authorities tried to murder my husband for advocating for sanctions over thieves and murders.”
She further tweeted, “and now they want to throw my husband in prison for calling their bloody war a WAR.”
Who Is Vladimir Vladimirovich Kara-Murza?
Vladimir Vladimirovich Kara-Murza is a 40-year-old politician who serves as Senior Fellow at the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights. Also, he helped to adapt sanctions laws in getting the United States, Britain, and European Union in 2012.
The deputy leader, Vladimir Kara-Murza served for the People’s Freedom Party. Also, he is a close friend of the late Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov.
In 2018, Vladimir Vladimirovich Kara-Murz was honored with the 2018 Civil Courage Prize for his contribution as “steadfast resistance to evil at great personal risk.”