Thousands Mourn Soviet-Era Dissident Novodvorskaya

Thousands of Russians on Wednesday paid their last respects to radical opposition politician Valeria Novodvorskaya, who dedicated her life to fighting first the Soviet authorities and then President Vladimir Putin.

Both ordinary and prominent Russians, many clutching flowers, turned out in central Moscow to pay tribute to the fiery Soviet-era dissident, who died aged 64 on Saturday.

She had long suffered from chronic illnesses, but her passing nevertheless came as a shock.

A representative of the Sakharov Center, a human rights museum, which helped organize the lying-in-state, said 10,000 to 15,000 people turned up to pay their respects.

The opposition magazine The New Times, where Novodvorskaya had of late been a columnist, said supporters chanted "Heroes do not die" and "Russia will be free" at the ceremony.

Many prominent opposition figures were in attendance including Pussy Riot punk band member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and activist Ilya Yashin.

A thorn in the side of both the Soviet and modern authorities, Novodvorskaya advocated the violent overthrow of the Communist regime, and was jailed and repeatedly committed to psychiatric hospitals.

Along with other Soviet dissidents and activists, she helped establish the Democratic Union liberal party.

In later years, she became one of the most vehement critics of Putin and his tight grip on power.

"I am married to Putin," Novodvorskaya, who was unmarried, wrote in 2009. "The Chechen war became our wedding night. And that's how we have lived since then: I cannot stand him or he me."

"I know he will outlive me. He is young and athletic and I am old and ill."

The Kremlin said in a terse statement that the Russian strongman, 61, expressed his condolences over the passing of Novodvorskaya.

Novodvorskaya's supporters say her health was sapped in Soviet psychiatric hospitals.

She spoke fluent English and French, possessed a deep knowledge of history and culture and was a deeply polarizing figure even among fellow opposition activists.

Prominent rights activist Lev Ponomarev praised her "absolute sincerity" and dedication.

"She did not have a family, she neglected her health but she was happy to serve her cause," he told Agence France Presse.

Novodvorskaya was to be cremated later Wednesday.