Prague square named after Russian opposition figure Nemtsov

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Prague has renamed a square in front of the Russian Embassy after Boris Nemtsov, honouring the slain Russian opposition leader.

The change did not immediately draw an angry response from Moscow, as did some other recent moves in the Czech capital, such as a plan to remove the statue of a World War II Soviet commander, Marshall Ivan Stepanovic Konev.

Nemtsov was an outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and was murdered near the Kremlin five years ago.

Prague Mayor Zdenek Hrib unveiled the new street sign on Thursday, a few days after the municipality approved the modification.

“I understand the new name is an expression of solidarity with the opposition in Russia and the human rights movement,” Hrib said.

Nemtsov’s daughter, Zhanna Nemtsova, thanked Prague during the ceremony.

“Boris Nemtsov was a representative of humanism in Russian politics,” Nemtsova said. “We had only few of them in history, unlike many tyrants,” she said through a translator.

Washington D.C. and Lithuania’s capital city of Vilnius have also honoured Nemtsov in the same way in recent years.