Nations and human rights advocates are condemning Russia’s conviction and jailing of a prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin.  The 5-year term handed to Alexei Navalny was harsher than expected.

Despite Russia’s state-run media largely ignoring the case, massive protests took place in Moscow.  Several people were arrested.

37-year-old Alexei Navalny denied the charges.  He is a leading campaigner against President Vladimir Putin's United Russia party, and regularly blogged about corruption in the Russian government.  Navalny was considered by many to be Russia’s most effective anti-corruption campaigner, opposition leader, and potential challenger to Vladimir Putin’s increasingly hard rule.  As soon as he emerged as a rival candidate, Prosecutors claimed Navalny embezzled A$500,000 worth of timber from a state-run lumber firm he advised.

US ambassador to Moscow Michael McFaul said, “We are deeply disappointed in the conviction of Navalny and the apparent political motivations in this trial.”

Russian rights group Memorial said the country “now has one more political prisoner,” while Amnesty International's John Dalhuisen said, “This was a parody of a prosecution and a parody of a trial.”