LOCAL NEWS

BAD DEBTS LOOM, BUT GDP BEATS FORECAST

MOSCOW — The economy contracted by a less-than-expected 10.1 percent in the first half of 2009, the Economic Development Ministry said Wednesday, but an OECD report warned of tough times ahead if Russia doesn’t deal with bad debt.

Economic Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina said gross domestic product had shrunk by 10.1 percent compared with the 10.2 to 10.4 percent previously forecast by the government and would end the year at minus 8 to 8.5 percent.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development predicts that Russia’s economy will contract by only 6.8 percent this year, a fact that Nabiullina noted in her remarks at a presentation of the organization’s report.

ACTIVIST ABDUCTED AND KILLED IN CAUCASUS

MOSCOW — Natalya Estemirova, a prominent human rights activist who documented abductions and murders in the North Caucasus, was snatched off a Grozny street Wednesday morning and found dead hours later along an Ingush highway.

The horrific killing of Memorial’s representative to Chechnya sent shock waves through the human rights community, and President Dmitry Medvedev ordered an investigation.

LOCAL HOME BIRTH ADVOCATE FACES MEDICAL MALPRACTISE TRIAL

Yelena Yermakova is being held in a pretrial detention center in the eighth month of her pregnancy and is likely to give birth behind bars.

Ironically, she is on trial for her role as a midwife in a series of home births that ended tragically.

Many expectant mothers dread the thought of going to the hospital, where medical staff are known to swear and shout and babies are only reunited with their mothers at feeding time.

AUTHORITIES CALL FOR BAN ON MIGRANT WORKERS IN TRADING

MOSCOW — The Federal Migration Service has recommended that migrant workers be banned from working as traders next year after finding numerous employment violations at Moscow’s sprawling Cherkizovsky Market.

Bookies Slam New Gambling Rules

MOSCOW — Bookmakers said Tuesday that they were “shocked” about a State Duma initiative that would require them to drastically boost their charter capital, warning that the measure would run them out of business.

Legislation submitted to the Duma this week would require bookmakers to increase their charter capital from the current 100 million rubles ($3 million) to 600 million rubles ($18.

NATIONAL NEWS

SITE'S CLOSURE LINKED TO MATVIYENKO, NOT HITLER

MOSCOW — Popular historical web site Hrono.info was up-and-running Tuesday after being transferred to a new provider, but its editor said he suspected an article critical of St. Petersburg Governor Valentina Matviyenko was responsible for its brief closure, not Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf.

REGIONS CONSIDER COW LIMITS

MOSCOW — Rural Russians might have to cut down their number of chickens, pigs and cows if a bill being considered by the State Duma becomes law.

Under the proposal, regional authorities could impose limits on how much livestock individual citizens may own.

Adygeya Officials Caught In Scandal Over Poaching

MOSCOW — The Natural Resources and Environment Ministry told Krasnodar region officials on Tuesday to take strict measures against a group of people, including an Adygeya deputy finance minister, who illegally entered a nature reserve and were carrying unregistered hunting rifles.

More than a dozen people were briefly detained earlier this month by OMON special forces and officials from the Caucasus State Biosphere Reserve, a Russian and UNESCO protected area, park employees said.

LOCAL BUSINESS

LOCAL REAL ESTATE PRICES SINK TO THREE-YEAR LOW

Prices for new build real estate in St. Petersburg have dropped to as little as 50,000 rubles ($1,580) per square meter, bringing them down to 2006 levels.

The first major developer in the city to offer such a price was LEK, Delovoi Peterburg reported.

IMPORTED CARS TO BE CHECKED FOR PESTS

Border checkpoints began inspecting used vehicles being imported into Russia for dangerous pests hiding in their tires and crevices on Wednesday, a measure that could create headaches for both private importers and small automobile dealerships.

OPINION

MEDVEDEV’S MILITARY STAGNATION

The Russia-Georgia war last August demonstrated Moscow’s assertive stance in foreign and security policy, of which military power is one of its major instruments. But the short five-day war showed that much of Russia’s weaponry is obsolete and that its ability to conduct skillful warfare is limited.

STATUS QUO RESTRUCTURING

Recent events concerning two automakers — GM and GAZ — underscore the difference in the U.S. and Russian governments’ approaches to dealing with the economic crisis.

CULTURE

BRAND NEW OPERA DEBUTS IN CITY

“Tsaritsa,” a modern opera focusing on the life of Catherine the Great and composed by David Tukhmanov, arguably the most acclaimed Soviet-era melodist, will see its world premiere at St. Petersburg’s Alexandriinsky Theater on Wednesday and Thursday.

The opera, which boasts opulent sets inspired by the interiors of the Catherine Palace in Tsarskoye Selo, covers the entire history of the empress’s reign.

CHERNOV’S CHOICE

The St. Petersburg Prosecutor’s Office has admitted that local music fans are under police surveillance — officially as a measure to counteract “extremist activities.

Meat feast

Casa del Myaso — yet another restaurant to find a home in the cellars surrounding the city’s historic stock exchange — isn’t shy about expressing its fondness for meat. Its title translates as “house of meat” and the publicity materials that accompanied its recent opening announced that it is a “no fish restaurant.