Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza on surviving Putin’s gulag – and the moment when he thought he would be executed
Poisoned twice and sentenced to the longest term ever handed down to a Russian government opponent, Kara-Murza details his confinement in a Siberian prison and why he returned to fight for his country.
Vladimir Kara-Murza is a Russian opposition politician and Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for The Washington Post. In April 2023, he was sentenced to 25 years in a Siberian prison colony after being convicted by a Russian court of charges related to his criticism of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He was released in August 2024 as part of a prisoner exchange.
Kara-Murza spoke to Monocle Radio’s Andrew Mueller about how he survived solitary confinement and facing what he believed to be his impending execution before an unexpected release.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Listen to the full version on The Big Interview from Monocle Radio.
Can you articulate the feeling of standing in the dock and being told that you’ll do 25 years?
My first thought was: ‘Job well done.’ Because in the distorted, Orwellian reality of Vladimir Putin’s Russia, that is the highest mark of recognition that you can earn for political opposition work. I’m also a historian, so I couldn’t help but think of the fact that this was the longest sentence handed down to a political prisoner in our country since the death of Josef Stalin in 1953.
How did you adjust to the idea that this was your life now?
There’s a saying that the subconscious dream of every historian is to experience the subject of their studies in person. But be careful what you wish for, because one of my areas of study is the dissident movement in the Soviet Union. It was astonishing how much the gulag system, down to the smallest details, has remained the same as what you read about in writings such as Vladimir Bukovsky’s book [To Build a Castle: My Life as a Dissenter], which was published nearly half a century ago.
What were your days like when they were reduced to being inside a small cell?
I spent close to a year in solitary confinement with no breaks. You sit in a tiny, three-by-four-metre cell with a small metal-barred window under the ceiling. Your bunk is attached to the wall at 05.00 with a wake-up call, and taken down again at lights out at 21.00. The guards bring you a pen and paper each day, and you’re allowed to write for an hour and a half. Then they take the paper and pen away, and there’s nothing for the rest of the day. All you can do is aimlessly walk in a circle, wallowing in your thoughts and memories.
When did you understand that you were being released?
It was the middle of the night. I was suddenly woken up by the loud screeching of the cell doors being burst open. A security officer barged in with a few guards and told me, ‘Convict Kara-Murza, you have 10 minutes to get up, get dressed and get ready.’ At that moment, I was certain that they were going to lead me out to the forest and shoot me. But instead, they drove me to the airport.
Why did you go back to Russia? You knew the risks – you’ve been poisoned twice and many of your friends and colleagues have been imprisoned and/or killed.
Russia is my country, my home. I love Russia. It’s a beautiful nation with a lot of talented people. It just happens to be ruled by a criminal, murderous, kleptocratic, KGB-led dictatorship. I want my country to be better than it is today. And unless we do something to bring about change, it won’t happen. I’ve always believed that the only way politicians can truly lead is by personal example. What right would I have to tell my fellow citizens to stand up to the Putin dictatorship if I were too scared to do it myself?
Listen to the full conversation with Vladimir Kara-Murza on Monocle Radio.
