====2021 alteration of Alexei Navalny's status of prisoner of conscience====
[[Amnesty International]] designated [[Alexei Navalny]] [[Prisoner of conscience|prisoners of conscience]] in 2012.<ref name="RFE185">{{cite news|date=18 May 2012|title=Amnesty Calls Navalny, Udaltsov 'Prisoners of Conscience'|url=http://www.rferl.org/content/amnesty-navalny-udaltsov-prisoners-of-conscience/24584838.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130113113510/http://www.rferl.org/content/amnesty-navalny-udaltsov-prisoners-of-conscience/24584838.html|archive-date=13 January 2013|access-date=18 May 2012|publisher=RFE/RL}}</ref> However, in February 2021, it stripped Navalny of the status, due to lobbying about videos and pro-nationalist statements he made in 2007 that allegedly constituted hate speech.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Gessen|first=Masha|date=24 February 2021|title=Why Won't Amnesty International Call Alexey Navalny a Prisoner of Conscience?|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/why-wont-amnesty-international-call-alexey-navalny-a-prisoner-of-conscience|access-date=3 May 2021|magazine=The New Yorker|archive-date=8 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508070013/https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/why-wont-amnesty-international-call-alexey-navalny-a-prisoner-of-conscience|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Carroll|first=Oliver|date=24 February 2021|title=Anger after Amnesty strips Navalny of 'prisoner of conscience' status|newspaper=The Independent|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/navalny-amnesty-russia-putin-kremlin-b1806712.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224173222/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/navalny-amnesty-russia-putin-kremlin-b1806712.html |archive-date=24 February 2021 |url-access=limited |url-status=live|access-date=27 May 2021|quote=In recent months, as Mr Navalny has gained prominence internationally... Russian state media has stepped up messages emphasising his nationalistic past. Those arguments have been amplified in a broad network of Kremlin-sympathising media at home and abroad. These outlets include ''Grayzone'', an opaquely funded leftist publication based in the United States, which appears to have been privy to lobbying around the Amnesty decision.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=25 February 2021|title=Amnesty's removal of Navalny's 'prisoner of conscience' status sparks Twitter storm|website=English Jamnews|url=https://jam-news.net/amnestys-removal-of-navalnys-prisoner-of-conscience-status-sparks-outcry-and-controversy/|access-date=18 May 2021|archive-date=18 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518174131/https://jam-news.net/amnestys-removal-of-navalnys-prisoner-of-conscience-status-sparks-outcry-and-controversy/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=24 February 2021|title=Amnesty International rescinds Alexey Navalny's 'prisoner of conscience' status because of past 'hate speech', following rumored 'campaign' by individuals tied to Russia Today|language=en|website=Meduza|url=https://meduza.io/en/news/2021/02/23/amnesty-international-rescinds-alexey-navalny-s-prisoner-of-conscience-status-because-of-past-hate-speech-following-rumored-campaign-by-individuals-tied-to-russia-today|access-date=18 May 2021|archive-date=18 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518174434/https://meduza.io/en/news/2021/02/23/amnesty-international-rescinds-alexey-navalny-s-prisoner-of-conscience-status-because-of-past-hate-speech-following-rumored-campaign-by-individuals-tied-to-russia-today|url-status=live}}</ref>
Amnesty International's decision in February 2021 to strip [[Alexei Navalny]]'s status as a [[Prisoner of Conscience]], due to comments made about migrants in 2007 and 2008 regarded as hate speech,<ref name="Amnesty International">{{Cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/05/statement-on-alexei-navalnys-status-as-prisoner-of-conscience/|title=Statement on Alexei Navalny's status as Prisoner of Conscience|language=en|publisher=Amnesty International|access-date=9 May 2021|date=7 May 2021}}</ref> provoked criticism from other human rights organisations and resignations from supporters.<ref name="Al Jazeera 2021">{{cite web | title=Amnesty redesignates Russia's Navalny as prisoner of conscience – Human Rights News | website=Al Jazeera | date=7 May 2021 | url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/5/7/amnesty-re-designates-russias-navalny-as-prisoner-of-conscience | access-date=10 May 2021}}</ref><ref name="White 2021">{{cite web | last=White | first=Megan | title=Amnesty strips Alexei Navalny of 'prisoner of conscience' status | website=LBC | date=25 February 2021 | url=https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/amnesty-strips-alexei-navalny-of-prisoner-of-conscience-status/ | access-date=10 May 2021}}</ref><ref name="Times AI"/> Amnesty stated that a person who has "advocated violence or hatred" is excluded from their current definition of a Prisoner of Conscience and that the use of the term was intended to "emphasize the unjust nature of his detention and our opposition to his unfounded prosecution", but upon reviewing the case, the use of the term Prisoner of Conscience was found to be a mistake. Amnesty apologised for "poor timing" which had allowed the Kremlin to "weaponise" the controversy against Navalny's supporters.<ref name="amnestyNavalny">{{Cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/02/aleksei-navalny-prisoner-of-conscience/|title= Amnesty International statement on Aleksei Navalny |language=en|publisher=Amnesty International|date=25 February 2021|access-date=28 February 2021}}</ref> Amnesty stated it still considered Navalny a political prisoner.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/europe/2021/03/06/how-the-kremlin-outwitted-amnesty-international|title=How the Kremlin outwitted Amnesty International|language=en|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|date=4 March 2021|access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref> However Navalny has repeatedly refused to renounce the xenophobic videos he had made in the past and instead repeatedly stated that he hold zero regrets on making them in multiple interviews.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Muslim employee sues Amnesty over sacking after Alexei Navalny objections {{!}} Amnesty International {{!}} The Guardian |url=https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/08/amnesty-international-employee-sacked-alexei-navalny |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=amp.theguardian.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Luxmoore |first=Matthew |date=2021-02-26 |title=Navalny's Failure To Renounce His Nationalist Past May Be Straining His Support |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/navalny-failure-to-renounce-nationalist-past-support/31122014.html |access-date=2024-02-22 |work=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |language=en}}</ref>
The designation was reinstated in May 2021: Amnesty international stated that the withdrawal of the "prisoner of conscience" designation had been used as a pretext by the Government of the Russian Federation to further violate Navalny's human rights.<ref name="BBC News 2021 apologises">{{cite news|date=7 May 2021|title=Amnesty apologises to Alexei Navalny over 'prisoner of conscience' status|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57029346|access-date=27 May 2021|publisher=BBC News|quote=[In February, AI] said the decision [to remove the status] had been made internally and was not influenced by the Russian state. But in a new statement on Friday the organisation apologised and said their decision had been used to "further violate Navalny's rights" in Russia.|archive-date=20 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520024341/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57029346|url-status=live}}</ref>
An anonymous Amnesty employee<ref name="rferl-feb21">{{cite web|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/navalny-failure-to-renounce-nationalist-past-support/31122014.html|title=Navalny's Failure To Renounce His Nationalist Past May Be Straining His Support|website=rferl.org|date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414155050/https://www.rferl.org/a/navalny-failure-to-renounce-nationalist-past-support/31122014.html|archive-date=14 April 2021}}</ref> stated he believed a propaganda campaign was allegedly organised against Navalny, by making his previous controversial comments more prominent. Amnesty's decision was described by western media as "a huge victory for Russian state propaganda" which undermined Amnesty's support of Navalny's release.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-56181084|title=Amnesty strips Alexei Navalny of "prisoner of conscience" status|language=en|publisher=BBC News|access-date=28 February 2021|date=24 February 2021}}</ref><ref name="Times AI">{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/supporters-quit-amnesty-international-over-betrayal-of-alexei-navalny-d7csc8ghv|title=Supporters quit Amnesty International over "betrayal" of Alexei Navalny|language=en|work=The Times|access-date=28 February 2021|last1=Brown|first1=David}}</ref> Following those accusations, Amnesty International answered: "Reports that Amnesty's decision was influenced by the Russian state's smear campaign against Navalny are untrue. At no point were statements falsely attributed to Navalny, or information solely intended to discredit him, taken into consideration. Propaganda by the Russian authorities is recognizable as such."<ref name="amnestyNavalny"/>
Amnesty later redesignated Navalny as a Prisoner of Conscience, stating on 7 May 2021 that, as an initial step in a review of its "approach to the use of the term 'Prisoner of Conscience'", it will no longer exclude people from being called Prisoners of Conscience "solely based on their conduct in the past," as they recognize people's "opinions and behaviour may evolve over time."<ref name="Amnesty International"/><ref name="BBC News 2021 apol">{{cite web | title=Amnesty apologises to Alexei Navalny over 'prisoner of conscience' status | website=BBC News | date=7 May 2021 | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57029346 | access-date=10 May 2021}}</ref>
