Moscow mayor announces shutdown of 30 markets

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said yesterday that 30 markets with an average turnover of hundreds of millions of dollars were shut down. Nikolai Lazebny, head of the operative search unit of the Directorate for Economic Security and Corruption Control, clarified that there were 7 aglomerate markets (Sindika in Odintsovo, Abramtsevo in Balashikha, Merkuriy in Balashikha, Pravy Bereg in Khimki, Kashirsky Dvor).

About 10,000 enterprises and entrepreneurs stopped work. Only 14 out of 252 retail markets were legal. 179 did not meet the standards of retail markets.

Sergey Markov, head of the Institute for Political Studies, emphasized that closing the markets would not help. The problem was that illegal migrants were into thefts, robberies and other crimes. Closing 30 markets with about 2,000 people working there means making 60,000 people unemployed. Half of them will find new jobs, half will start robbing, the official supposes.

The expert added that most illegal migrants were working at construction sites and shops and wanted to be legalized. Markov noted that there were migrants willing to assimilate.

Ismail Agakishiyev, President of Soyuz Kompaniy Konsulting-Analitika-Piar, pointed out that the authorities were fighting the repercussions of evil, not its source. The source of evil lies on the border. Migrants need to be given permits to work at the border, so that they could be legalized beforehand. He noted that migrants should be provided with a job and accommodation before being allowed to enter, instead of closing markets.