20 June 2004 20:04
`Vegas of the east` cleans up image
ByLine: NICK PATON WALSH MOSCOW
IT IS known as the Las Vegas of the east. A decadent neon playground, a city boasting the world's greatest
number of billionaires and where money can buy any pleasure; chemical or carnal.
But now Moscow, keen to bolster its image as an international centre for business and tourism, is cleaning up its
act. Nightclubs are now subject to a 'voluntary' scheme under which they must certify their premises as a
'clean zone' where partygoers do not take drugs. Children under 14 are not allowed out after 10pm unless they
are with a responsible adult.
The moves come after years of expensive renovations financed by the Moscow city mayor, Yuri Luzhkov, which have
helped make the former Soviet capital the third most expensive city to live in the world.
But while the car parks at the top clubs are jammed with Humvees, BMWs and Mercedes, the side streets of the city
outskirts are often abuzz with prostitution and drug dealing.
President Vladimir Putin recently labelled spiralling drug addiction a threat to national security and urged his
officials to do more to combat the estimated four million drug addicts in Russia.
Vasili Goloborodov, officer of the Moscow department for state narcotics control, said stricter controls in Europe
meant Russia was no longer a transit point for drugs for a more lucrative western market, but had become a market
itself.
Parental involvement is sought in keeping on a leash Moscow's army of delinquents, who can be seen in its parks
and squares drinking beer. The government has been trying to impose a curfew on under-18s, and last month succeeded in
pushing through a law barring under-14s from public places after 10pm. If they are caught without a responsible adult,
they could face a fine of up to pounds 8,000.
Efforts to make Moscow a European capital on a par with Paris or Berlin have been concentrated on the city centre,
where some of the old-fashioned kiosks and grimy caravans have been swept away. Those which, to the fury of US media
companies, used to sell pirated DVDs and CDs have been moved on.
Even the city's prostitutes, whose pimps often work with the protection of the police, occasionally feel the
pressure.
Nikolai, an aid worker with prostitutes, said: 'During recent national holidays and elections there were several
campaigns to remove the girls temporarily from Moscow. The girls - who are brave and have seen a lot - flee with panic
when the riot police arrive.'
He said pimps worked with police, paying pounds 250 a night for a spot on a central street.
[The Observer] |
RUSSIA IN FACTS
