Only a few weeks ago, Russian opposition leader and activist Vladimir Kara-Murza sat in solitary confinement in a Siberian maximum-security prison, re-reading classic novels, learning Spanish, and digesting the news from the thousands of letters he received every month from supporters in Russia and around the world. Now, thanks to a historic prisoner exchange in August, Kara-Murza and 15 other political prisoners are home and—along with the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), Members of Congress, government leaders, and an active network of civil society organizations—more committed than ever to shine light on those still behind bars.
“Putin propaganda wants people like us to feel demoralized and isolated, to feel alone and that we do not exist,” said Kara-Murza at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) event on September 17, hosted by Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) and moderated by Damon Wilson, NED President and CEO. “I’m so deeply grateful to all of you for recognizing this lie and for not going along with it because, having been on the inside, I can tell you how important it is to receive those words of support and solidarity from the Free World.”
The event gathered Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle, policymakers, democracy leaders, and media. “I had my doubts about you returning to Russia,” recalled Senator Cardin. “But you were determined to not be deterred by the oppression of the regime and to speak on behalf of the millions of Russians that depended upon you. We thank you for giving us hope. Hope that the Russian Federation will one day be free.”
Holding up a poster of Boris Nemtsov that states, “Heroes do not die,” Ranking Member of the Committee on Armed Services and of the Helsinki Commission Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) also gave thanks for Vladimir’s safe return: “If we read the slogan about Vladimir Kara-Murza, who’s been poisoned twice and recovered twice, and who’s been jailed with deprivation and kept in solitary confinement, we’d say heroes are hard to kill,” said Senator Wicker.
Vladimir Kara-Murza was arrested in April 2022 and later sentenced to 25 years in prison for his activism and vocal opposition to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Since his arrest, a coalition of nonprofit democracy organizations worked together, garnering political support, and advocating for the release of Vladimir and other political prisoners in Russia.
A bipartisan group of Members of Congress, government leaders, and active network of civil society organizations gathered at the event hosted by the SFRC on September 17, to recognize the Kara-Murzas and those still imprisoned by the Kremlin. [Watch the full event.]
“We’re here today to celebrate and honor Vladimir’s release and his reunion with his family, but we know there are so many others that remain behind bars in Russia and Belarus; thousands who have bravely stood up to the dictatorships both of Vladimir Putin and Alyaksandr Lukashenka,” said NED President and CEO Damon Wilson. “Today is an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to the political prisoners of the Kremlin. Let us use today to reaffirm our commitment to their belief that a free and democratic Russia is possible, and let us use today to reaffirm our commitment to help Ukraine defeat Putin.”
NED awarded the Democracy Service Medal in June 2024 to both Vladimir Kara-Murza, who sent an acceptance message from prison, and Evgenia Kara-Murza, awarded for her tireless advocacy work in support of all political prisoners. The NED Board recently presented the award to Vladimir in person.
“The work will continue,” said Evgenia Kara-Murza. She and Vladimir will support the families of political prisoners through the new October 30th Foundation, which was founded with funds from the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize. “It is very small thing that we can do right now to make sure that these families survive, that that they have something to feed their kids with, that they can send their kids to school, that they can pay for medication while their loved ones are being held behind bars for the only crime of standing up to a murderous regime.”
The October 30th Foundation, NED and the coalition of NGOs, government leaders, and other supporters are determined to build on the momentum of the historic prisoner release, to fight for all political prisoners—including the over 700 political prisoners of Russia’s regime—to be freed from unjust imprisonment.
“Whatever the cynics and the skeptics will tell you, advocacy works, public attention protects, and public attention saves,” said Kara-Murza, reflecting on his time behind bars. “As we have seen yet again last month, we have seen this so many times before in our history, public opinion in the free world at the end of the day is more powerful than any dictatorship can ever hope to be. And beyond the personal gratitude, I want to thank all of you for standing in solidarity with all of the peaceful prisoners in Russia.”
Join Us: In recognition of the Day of Political Prisoners, the World Movement for Democracy will host a public discussion at NED on October 30th to highlight the power of global advocacy. This will be an opportunity to celebrate the recent release of political prisoners, including Vladimir Kara-Murza of Russia and Hisham Kassem of Egypt. Family of former and current political prisoners, including Evgenia Kara-Murza of Russia and Jose Carlos Zamora of Guatemala, will share their perspectives on strengthening the collective global voice to advocate for the release of political prisoners.
