Economist.com Cities Guide: Moscow Briefing - October 2005

News this month

Rough justice

The latest chapter in the saga of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, an ex-oil tycoon convicted of corporate crimes last spring, unfolded in the middle of the night on September 23rd. At 1am, five policemen banged on the door of a room in the Ararat Park Hyatt, a trendy five-star hotel, where one of Mr Khodorkovsky's lawyers was staying. The guest—Bob Amsterdam, a Canadian-American lawyer—was told there was a problem with his visa, and that he had to go to the police station. He refused, and was deported.

The appeal against Mr Khodorkovsky's conviction had been hastily dismissed in court the day before. The speed of the appeal-judges' decision caught many by surprise; the trial itself had lasted 11 months, and it took several weeks simply to read the original verdict. Many speculate that the hurried rejection was aimed to prevent Mr Khodorkovsky from standing in an imminent by-election for the Duma, the lower house of Russia’s parliament.

Besides hustling Mr Amsterdam out of the country, authorities are threatening to disbar several of Mr Khodorkovsky’s Russian lawyers for alleged malpractice. The defendant himself may yet be charged with more offences. The appellate judges claim to have followed ordinary criminal procedures, but the case has become a symbol of Russia’s flawed justice system.

Ready, set, go

The race for seats in the Moscow Duma, the city’s local parliament, looks to be one of Russia’s most fiercely contested polls. The election on December 4th will select 35 deputies: 20 from party lists and 15 from individual city constituencies. The city's choices will be seen as an indicator of where the political parties stand ahead of the national Duma and presidential elections, in 2007 and 2008 respectively.

Yury Luzhkov, Moscow’s popular mayor, has mounted a strong campaign for United Russia, the Duma's dominant party which staunchly supports Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president. But the liberal opposition parties—crushed in the last national elections—have come back to life. The two main liberal parties, Yabloko and the Union of Right Forces, declared in late September that they would join forces, thereby uniting the liberal vote.

Ritzy business

Moscow is a caricature of urban inequality: despite the stark poverty visible on its streets, Russia’s capital boasts 33 billionaires to New York’s 31. Legend has it that the city’s first Ferrari showroom sold its stock of 75 cars in one day.

The Millionaire Fair, held in late September in a Moscow exhibition centre, sought to capitalise on the city's love affair with luxury. All the accoutrements of wealth were on display: fast cars, slinky furs, bespoke luggage, glittering gems and unaffordable women. One gallery offered a novel take on the concept of rags and riches: two sets of clothing—one woven entirely of dollar bills, the other of roubles—on sale for $15,000. Other items included helicopters and a $10m island (sold on the fair’s second day).

Metro matters

Yury Luzhkov, Moscow’s mayor, opened the city’s 171st metro stop on September 10th, 70 years after the city opened its first rail line. The gleaming metal-and-glass station, Delovoi Tsentr (Business Centre), is part of the mayor’s grand urban-planning project, the “Moskva City” development. Linked to the light-blue Filyovskaya line, the station will serve as the primary connection between the city centre and Moskva City when the complex is finished in 2010.

Officials are also searching for ways to protect the city’s subways from terrorism. An experimental system to alert station staff to biological and chemical weapons will soon be installed in Belorusskaya station. In the meantime, Moscow will have to rely on more old-fashioned methods: according to metro bosses, two eagle-eyed passengers recently helped avert two large terrorist explosions on the system. Officials did not disclose the times and places of the thwarted attacks, only revealing that “timely information” from passengers prevented two “very serious” explosions. The last terrorist blast took place more than a year ago.

Catch if you can

October 2005

Pop Art at the Tretyakov Gallery

Until November 13th 2005

This autumn, the New Tretyakov Gallery hosts two related exhibitions: “Russian Pop Art” and “Andy Warhol: Artist of Modern Life”. The latter is a retrospective of Warhol’s familiar images; the former reveals how Warhol’s influence penetrated the Iron Curtain. It turns out that applying pop sensibilities to Soviet life made for fascinating art. Over 250 works from private collections and the gallery’s own holdings depict everyday objects from the communist era. These renditions of doors, appliances, matchboxes and electric sockets were considered subversive when first exhibited in the 1960s, condemning Russian pop artists to obscurity. But their dramatic departure from the artistic style of socialist propaganda is remarkable, well worth the attention it is finally getting.

The New Tretyakov Gallery, 10 Krymsky Val. Metro: Oktyabrskaya. Tel: +7 (095) 230-9766/7788. See also the gallery's website.

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