Vladimir Putin will kill me: Russian dissident Ludmila Kovaleva pleads to stay

Ludmila Kovaleva helps lead camels on Broome’s Cable Beach, but she could be forced to return to her native ­Russia – where she believes she will face imprisonment or worse.

Ludmila Kovaleva on Broome’s picturesque Cable Beach, where she helps tourists enjoy guided camel rides.

Today, Ludmila Kovaleva will help lead the camels that carry tourists up and down Broome’s spectacular Cable Beach. But in as little as a month, she could be forced to return to her native ­Russia – where she believes she will face imprisonment or worse.

Ms Kovaleva’s only hope of ­remaining in Australia is in the hands of Immigration Minister Andrew Giles, who has the power to intervene and award her the visa that has so far eluded her during her 12 years in Australia.

She says the fear of returning to Russia – where she believes she will face retribution from powerful forces within the Putin regime – leaves her feeling physically sick.

“I’m terrified,” she told The Australian, adding she believes she could be thrown into jail or even disappeared if she returns.

“They put people in prison for even saying a word against the government. I’m scared to go back, it’s really dangerous,” she said.

Ms Kovaleva and her then-husband, British man Nick Stride, fled from Moscow in 2010. He had been working for a UK company on the construction of a project for Russian oligarch Igor Shuvalov, but after the company was sacked he was forced to remain as he was considered essential to the project.

He was repeatedly told that his wife was not allowed to leave the country and would be harmed if he did not return.

Later, after the couple had fled the country, Mr Stride leaked ­information that helped expose Mr Shuvalov’s financial dealings.

Mr Shuvalov, a former deputy prime minister and the current chair of state-owned investment bank Vnesheconombank, and his family have been added to travel sanctions lists by Australia and the US as part of the response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

That war has brought into stark relief the dangers facing those who speak out against the government. Several prominent critics of the government have died in mysterious circumstances this year.

While the Australian government has been generous in its ­accommodation of Ukrainians fleeing from the invasion, Ms Kovaleva’s case shows that the same protection does not necessarily extend to those Russians living in fear of Mr Putin and his associates.

Immigration lawyer Simon Jeans, who has been handling Ms Kovaleva’s visa efforts, says her case stands out due to the clear threat against her from the Russian regime.

“It’s so obvious; it’s not just the corruption in Russia that is endemic but also the killing of opponents,” he said.

He believes Ms Kovaleva will end up like the Putin critics in Russia who have died this year.

“She’ll get killed in Russia, there’s no doubt about it,” he said.

“They’re cracking down on any sort of dissenters, any people opposed are perceived to be opposed to the regime. The human rights situation has become a lot worse since the war, and it also means that they can get away with a lot more as well.”

Ms Kovaleva’s protracted efforts to secure a permanent home in Australia have been marked by setbacks, disappointments and unexpected developments.

She has made multiple applications for protection visas between 2011 and 2018, before she and Mr Stride divorced in 2019.

She married an Australian in 2020 – a union that would have allowed her to secure an onshore partner visa – but that marriage broke down after her husband ­allegedly attacked her.

The immigration department then advised her to lodge a new ­request earlier this year after the outbreak of war in Ukraine, but Mr Jeans says repeated requests to the minister have been screened out by the department.

For the past two years, Ms Kovaleva has been working for Broome Camel Safaris, one of the companies that run sunset camel rides along one of the most beautiful beaches in the country.

“I love it, it’s the best work I’ve ever had,” she says.

Her boss, Alice Bird, says the community is desperate for Ms Kovaleva to stay. “They couldn’t send her back surely, it would be inhumane,” Ms Bird said.

Ms Kovaleva’s bridging visa is due to expire in mid-January.

Mr Giles’s office said the Immigration Minister was unable to comment on individual cases due to privacy reasons.