Egypt detains Brotherhood supporters before vote

Sat Nov 20, 2010

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian security forces detained more than 100 supporters of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group in different cities on Friday, police and Brotherhood sources said.

The crackdown, a little more than a week ahead of Egypt's parliamentary election due on November 28, followed a series of arrests since October after the Brotherhood, Egypt's biggest opposition group, announced it would participate in the vote.

Hamdy Hassan, spokesman for the Brotherhood's parliamentary bloc, said that "certainly over 100 Brotherhood supporters were detained on Friday, and from different cities".

"What happened today are not just assaults, it was more like war. Police fired at the crowds... Some people were injured," Hassan said, adding that he had witnessed clashes in Alexandria.

According to police sources, about 200 people were detained in Nile Delta cities and places near Cairo while 24 more were detained in the coastal town of Alexandria, north of Cairo.

Egypt's official state news agency MENA said about 30 were detained in Alexandria.

All those detained were engaged in public gatherings or were hanging election posters, police sources and MENA said.

Police sources and MENA said some people in the crowds threw rocks at security men and a few were injured.

The Brotherhood officially is banned but skirts the law by running candidates as independents. It controls a fifth of seats in parliament and has said it expects authorities to prevent it from securing an equivalent number in the November poll.

The group, and political analysts, have said the ruling party's candidates are again expected to take a majority.

The vote will be closely watched to see how much space the government of President Hosni Mubarak, 82, who has been in power since 1981, allows to the opposition.

Brotherhood members and supporters frequently are detained, often for long periods and without charge. Amnesty International called on Egypt last month to release or charge members of the group who were recently detained.

The United States on Monday said Egypt should allow peaceful political gatherings, open media coverage and international observers in the run up to the parliamentary vote.

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE6AJ00D20101120?sp=true.

Egypt's Mubarak to visit Saudi

By AFP
Saturday, November 20 2010

RIYADH

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was to hold talks in Saudi Arabia with King Abdullah on Saturday, Egyptian state-owned media reported.

Mubarak was to "visit Saudi Arabia for a few hours for talks with King Abdullah on regional issues," the leading government-owned daily Al-Ahram said without elaborating.

It recalled that King Abdullah has insisted he is "in good health" after suffering a slipped disc.

According to a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency on Friday, King Abdullah underwent tests in the morning at the King Faisal hospital in Riyadh after a new outbreak of pain in his back.

"It appears that the herniated disc, accompanied by an accumulation of blood, is putting pressure on the nerves," the royal court statement said.

"The medical team has recommended to the king that he rests," it added.

Source: Daily Nation.
Link: http://www.nation.co.ke/News/africa/-/1066/1057026/-/121qbqk/-/.

Halal industrial park opens in Tatarstan

Nov 20, 2010

Russia's first halal industrial park opened on Friday in Tatarstan.

According to the press service of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of that republic.

"Halal" in Arabic translates as "tolerated", that is, products manufactured strictly according to the canons of Shari.

It is not just about the finished product, but also the raw materials, meat, flour, spices and fabrics.

In the industrial park they only produce halal foods, including meat.

Russia is the home to 20 million Muslims, and there are over 1.5 billion consumers of halal products in the world.

Source: Voice of Russia.
Link: http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/20/35316843.html.

Russia's space agency to launch own website by year end

Nov 19, 2010

Russia's space agency plans to launch its own website by the end of the year, the agency’s representative Valery Zaichko said Friday.

The agency will publish satellite data, charts, maps, digital models of Earth relief on this website the, he said.

He also said that the agency plans to set up the federal remote Earth sensing data base.

Source: Voice of Russia.
Link: http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/19/35292527.html.

Canada's MDA To Build Lunar Rover Prototypes

Fri, 19 November, 2010

By Peter B. de Seldin

PARIS — Canada’s MDA Corp. will design and build two lunar rover prototypes for yet-undetermined missions under a contract with the Canadian Space Agency valued at 11.5 million Canadian dollars ($11.3 million) and announced Nov. 18.

The contract, part of the agency’s Exploration Surface Mobility Program, calls for the rovers to be ready for field testing in late 2012 along with other robotic technologies Canada is developing to prepare for a future international space exploration effort.

Richmond, B.C.-based MDA had won an earlier contract, valued at 6 million Canadian dollars, to design a prototype Mars rover under the same program.

The Exploration Surface Mobility Program, along with work on a next-generation Canadarm, is part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan. The government is investing 110 million Canadian dollars over three years, through 2012, to position Canadian industry for future space missions in which robotics will play a central role.

Source: Space News.
Link: http://www.spacenews.com/civil/101119-mda-build-lunar-rover-prototypes.html.

Fishing for success – Algeria expanding domestic production

Friday, 19 November 2010

With a view to expanding domestic production and reducing Algeria’s dependence on imports, the government has set ambitious goals for the industry over the next four years. These include estimating available fish stocks, conserving resources, modernizing the fishing fleet, adapting to climate change, preserving artisanal fisheries and improving training methods, reports Global Arab Network according to OBG.

Administrators, professionals, scientists and associations recently gathered at a national conference on fisheries and fishery resources in Algiers in mid-October to assess the sector’s performance over and explore strategies for future development. Speaking at the conference, Abdullah Khanafou, minister of fishing and fishing resources, called for a bigger national role for the sector.

According to Khanafou, the country’s fishing resources remain underutilized, with only 145,000 tonnes caught annually from an available stock of 222,000 tonnes. He said Algeria’s annual quota for tuna – set at 1100 tonnes by the International Commission for the Conservation of Tuna – had not been reached.

The national fishing industry has access to 1,280 kilometers of coastline, and boasts 30 fishing ports and a fleet of around 4,500 fishing boats. As such, it holds significant potential for the economy. Its development, however, remains dependent on the government’s ability to protect fish stocks and improve technical expertise.

In order to modernize the sector, the Ministry of Fishing and Fishing Resources (Ministère de la Pêche et des Ressources Halieutiques, MPRH) has outlined plans to repair fishing boats, acquire modern fishing equipment and set up pilot fish farms. The government has also promised to build 13 wholesale markets. At the conference, it was announced that three such markets were nearing completion. The objective of this program is to monitor fish quality, collect production data and organize the market.

The sector has already benefited from state funds, having received AD26bn (€248.3m) for the purchase of new fishing vessels. As a result of these new additions, the average age of an Algerian fishing boat has declined from 20 to 12 years. However, because the government believes that the boat capacity is now sufficient to meet the sector’s needs, this program has been suspended.

The government has also considered banning the export of certain fish to increase domestic supply and reduce prices. In an appearance on National Radio, Khanafou voiced his intention to ban exports of certain species, including sardines. He did qualify, however, that “the export of high value species may be retained and compensated by the import of mass consumption species.”

Algeria has also turned to aquaculture – the farming of fish and seafood – to increase local supply. To encourage private sector investment in aquaculture production, the MRPH is carrying out market surveys to identify suitable sites (450 have been identified so far) and granting subsidies within the framework of the national fund for fishing and aquaculture development. Although 12 state-funded aquaculture projects have been launched, their viability has been threatened by the high cost of feed that farm operators must import. In response, the government has plans to reduce customs duties and the VAT rate for imports of fish feed, as specified in the draft budget law for 2011. In addition, the MPRH is conducting a pilot project for the manufacture of fish feed.

Another obstacle to domestic consumption is the excessive price of fish, often a result of smuggling, illegal fishing and transactions made by middle-men between producers and consumers. Combating these phenomena, the government expects, will place downward pressure on prices. In response, the government has set up 13 wholesale fish markets to monitor the quantity of fish caught and called on the coastguard to crack down on illegal fishing.

At a time when the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has stressed the importance of aquaculture – in October it referred to the industry as the “fastest growing food sector in the world”, Algeria’s attempt to boost its fishing sector are timely. However, the government needs to maintain financial and legislative support to ensure that the industry’s continued growth.

Global Arab Network

Source: Global Arab Network.
Link: http://www.english.globalarabnetwork.com/201011198091/Economics/fishing-for-success-algeria-expanding-domestic-production.html.

End of Hajj: Algerian Hajjis prepare to return home

19 November, 2010

Algiers- The direction of programming at Air Algeria Company has scheduled 17 flights to transport 63,000 Hadjis from Jeddah airport, Saudi Arabia to five airports in Algeria.

The first group of Algerian Hadjis will arrive tonight at the airport of Constantine, the second at Oran airport and the third at Houari Boumediene International Airport.

According to the director of programming at Air Algeria, Rabah Midou, in an interview with Ennahar, the transaction involves the transport of 63,000 Hadjis for the 2010 season, spread over 17 flights and this, during 12 days, beginning Saturday November 20.

The first group of Hadjis will arrive early Saturday evening at 9 pm at the airport of Constantine where the last group will arrive on December 10th at 4:51 p.m.

Houari Boumediene International Airport will host the largest number of flights from the airport of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with 92 flights, followed by Oran airport with 81 flights, then Constantine 41 flights, Annaba and Ouargla with five flights each.

According to our interlocutor, the scenario of the month of Ramadhan will not be repeated because Air Algeria has increased its staff with sending 100 staff in the Holy Land in order to ensure a smooth return of Hadjis. Material resources have also been established and dozens of aircraft, including five Airbus 330 with 250 seats and three Boeings 767, with 250 seats are made available. Two planes, including one from Portugal, were leased; a Boeing 767 and an Airbus 340.

Ennahar / Habiba Mahmoudi

Source: Ennahar.
Link: http://www.ennaharonline.com/en/news/5222.html.

Pentagon confirms sending tanks to Afghanistan

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- A Pentagon official confirmed on Friday that the United States is sending heavily armored battle tanks to southwestern Afghanistan to aid in the fight against the Taliban.

Fourteen M1A1 Abrams tanks, which pack a super-accurate 120-mm main gun, are en route to Afghanistan and will begin to arrive in January, Pentagon spokesman Dave Lapan told reporters.

Gen. Richard P. Mills, commander of Regional Command Southwest which is responsible for security operations in Helmand and Nimroz provinces, requested the tanks, said Lapan.

Gen. David Petraeus, commander of the International Security Assistance Force, and Gen. James N. Mattis, the commander of U.S. Central Command, approved the request.

"All commanders evaluate their situations and their operations, " Lapan said. "The commander in RC-Southwest determined that tanks would be useful in the fight he has because of the increased mobility, the increased firepower, because of the optics the tanks have."

Lapan emphasized that sending tanks to Afghanistan does not represent an escalation of the conflict there.

"These things happen all the time," he said. "We're conducting full-spectrum combat operations today, we'll be doing it tomorrow, we'll be doing it next month. Until the Afghan security forces are ready to take over lead for security ... we will continue to do combat operations to defeat the enemy."

However, U.S. media saw the movement as new evidence that the Obama administration has taken a more aggressive position in fighting the Taliban in the country.

The Washington Post said on Friday that the U.S. decision to send tanks to Afghanistan for the first time in the nine-year war represents "a shift that signals a further escalation in the aggressive tactics that have been employed by American forces this fall to attack the Taliban."

Source: Xinhua.
Link: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-11/20/c_13614304.htm.

Muslim women unite against sexual violence

A major grassroots campaign recently called international attention to the underreported issues of sexual harassment and assault against women in Muslim states.

By Jamel Arfaoui for Magharebia in Tunis — 19/11/10

Scores of women's organizations from Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Asia joined forces last week for a sensational campaign led by the Coalition for Sexual and Bodily Rights in Muslim Societies (CSBR).

As part of the "One Day, One Struggle" simultaneous event on Wednesday (November 9th), public demonstrations, film screenings, theater performances and workshops were held in Bangladesh, Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Pakistan, Palestine, Sudan, Turkey and Tunisia.

The global initiative aimed at calling attention of Muslim societies to sexual abuse, genital mutilation, honor killings, stoning or lashing of women and the "right to bodily and sexual integrity of all people", the CSBR said.

The day was a declaration of action against "all the reactionary forces that look to control, dispose of and possess women's bodies", Sanaa Benachour, the head of Tunisia's Association for Democratic Women, said at a Tunis forum held to mark the event.

"We want to take some steps to overcome social hypocrisy, cultural oppression and political coercion and enable us to open a serious debate on sexual and physical rights," Benachour added.

Bodily rights include protection from sexual harassment. The issue is of particular concern in Tunisia, the only Maghreb participant in the international campaign.

Harassment and sexual abuse remain the most underreported and inadequately adjudicated of all crimes in Tunisia, lawyer Faouzi ben Mrad told forum attendees.

"The Penal Code needs to be reviewed. It suffers from several drawbacks, especially as the Tunisian legislation does not use the "sexual violence" term but rather talks of rape crimes, public prostitution or obscenity," ben Mrad said.

While the penalty for rape is a life sentence in Tunisia, the country still lags behind Algeria and Morocco when it comes to harassment, ben Mrad argued.

"The victim can't file a complaint to the court directly; she has to file a complaint to the prosecutor of the republic, who decides whether or not it is suitable for referral to a judge. Even when it is, the victim could still be legally prosecuted if the defendant is acquitted," he said.

Tunisian women complain about having to endure frequent violations in the workplace and on the street.

"I suffer from harassment every day, but cannot file a complaint because I can't provide the necessary evidence, which could make me a defendant," said Sarah, a teacher.

Meanwhile, National Committee of Working Women coordinator Najoua Makhlouf provided testimonies from female workers subjected to abuse, saying that "they are from humble origins and need the factory jobs, and they sometimes find themselves forced to give in to their superiors for fear of losing their livelihoods".

Last year, with the assistance of women's rights committees, a female employee of a private hospital dared to file a sexual harassment lawsuit against the hospital proprietor. The court granted her justice and a compensation of 80,000 dinars. The owner ended up shutting down his hospital, but the victim decided not to file a civil lawsuit against him.

Bochra Bel Haj Hmida, a lawyer and former president of the Tunisian Association for Democratic Women, stressed the need for laws ensuring psychological and social care for women and children victimized by sexual violence.

Hmida talked about a girl who was first seduced by her boyfriend and then sexually assaulted by a group of young men. The court ruled that the rape victim was engaged in prostitution and handed her a prison term.

"We shouldn't stop at punishing the guilty, but aim for a procedure for taking care of victims," Hmida said.

Source: Magharebia.com.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/11/19/feature-01.

As Arctic Temperatures Rise, Tundra Fires Increase

by Staff Writers
Champaign IL (SPX) Nov 19, 2010

In September, 2007, the Anaktuvuk River Fire burned more than 1,000 square kilometers of tundra on Alaska's North Slope, doubling the area burned in that region since record keeping began in 1950.

A new analysis of sediment cores from the burned area revealed that this was the most destructive tundra fire at that site for at least 5,000 years. Models built on 60 years of climate and fire data found that even moderate increases in warm-season temperatures in the region dramatically increase the likelihood of such fires.

The study was published this October in the Journal of Geophysical Research.

After the Anaktuvuk fire, University of Illinois plant biology professor Feng Sheng Hu sought to answer a simple question: Was this seemingly historic fire an anomaly, or were large fires a regular occurrence in the region?

"If such fires occur every 200 years or every 500 years, it's a natural event," Hu said. "But another possibility is that these are truly unprecedented events caused by, say, greenhouse warming."

On a trip to Alaska in 2008, Hu chartered a helicopter to the region of the Anaktuvuk fire and collected sediment cores from two affected lakes. He and his colleagues analyzed the distribution of charcoal particles in these cores and used established techniques to determine the approximate ages of different sediment layers.

The team found no evidence of a fire of similar scale and intensity in sediments representing roughly 5,000 years at that locale.

The researchers then analyzed 60 years of fire, temperature and precipitation records from the Alaskan tundra to determine whether specific climate conditions prevailed in years with significant tundra fires. They developed a model relating the tundra area burned in Alaska each year to the mean temperature and precipitation in the warmest period of the year: June through September.

This analysis uncovered a striking pattern, Hu said.

"There is a dramatic, nonlinear relationship between climate conditions and tundra fires, and what one may call a tipping point," he said. Once the temperature rises above a mean threshold of 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) in the June-through-September time period, he said, "the tundra is just going to burn more frequently."

For the past 60 years, annual mean temperatures during this warm season have fluctuated between about 6 and 9 degrees Celsius (42.8 to 48.2 degrees Fahrenheit), with temperatures trending upward since 1995. In 2007, the year of the historic fire, the mean temperature was a record 11.1 degrees Celsius, while precipitation and soil moisture dipped to an all-time low.

Higher precipitation, if it occurs, could dampen the effects of higher temperatures, but only to a limited extent, said Philip Higuera, a professor of forest ecology and biogeosciences at the University of Idaho and a co-author on the study.

"As temperature rises, so too does evaporation," he said. "So even if future precipitation increases, it's likely that increased evaporation will result in overall lower moisture availability. This affects plants, but it also makes dead vegetation more flammable and fire prone."

The study team also included researchers from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Neptune and Company, and the University of Washington.

Source: Terra Daily.
Link: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/As_Arctic_Temperatures_Rise_Tundra_Fires_Increase_999.html.

'Unpredictable' cholera to afflict Haiti for years: US

by Staff Writers
Washington (AFP) Nov 18, 2010

The deadly cholera epidemic in Haiti is virulent and unpredictable, and repeated outbreaks could wreak havoc for years to come, US officials and health experts warned on Thursday.

"This strain of cholera seems to be more virulent than normal strains," Thomas Adams, the special US coordinator for Haiti, told reporters.

"The disease fooled us," added Adams, saying a cholera outbreak was feared likely in the impoverished Caribbean nation following January's deadly earthquake, but most expected it to break out in the capital Port-au-Prince.

More than 1,100 people have died from the diarrhea-causing illness since it emerged in central and northern parts of the country last month, with more than 18,000 people infected.

A case of cholera has also been found in both the neighboring Dominican Republic and the US state of Florida. Both victims traveled from Haiti.

"The course of the cholera outbreak in Haiti is difficult to predict," the the US-based Centers for Disease Control said in a report on the progress of the disease and efforts to stop its deadly course.

"The Haitian population has no preexisting immunity to cholera, and environmental conditions in Haiti are favorable for its continued spread," it said.

"Longer-term persistence of (the bacterium) V. (Vibrio) cholerae in the environment in Haiti and recurrent cholera outbreaks also are possible."

While the initial source of the bacteria-based disease was likely contaminated water in the Artibonite River, future outbreaks could result from tainted food, the CDC said.

"Risk factors for illness might change as the outbreak expands over time. Contamination of food by persons who are ill, either via the use of contaminated water or poor food preparation hygiene also can contribute to the spread of disease."

Haiti has long suffered from dismal sanitation and polluted drinking water, a situation that worsened after the devastating 7.0 earthquake in January that displaced more than a million people and killed 250,000.

Just 17 percent of Haiti's population had access to adequate sanitation prior to the earthquake, which damaged many of the nation's treated water facilities and piped water distribution systems, the CDC said.

The CDC and other agencies are trying to widely distribute prepackaged oral rehydration solutions so that local residents can drink the safe fluids at the first sign of symptoms and hopefully ward off the deadly dehydration that cholera can cause.

But the harsh reality of life in the overpopulated tent camps around the capital and beyond, in addition to periodic riots as anger and frustration mount, means aid workers will face an uphill climb.

"The number of cases might be lowered substantially if efforts to reduce transmission are implemented fully, but they also might be increased substantially by delays in implementation, flooding, or other disruptions," the CDC said.

Manoj Menon, the CDC liaison for the US cholera response, told reporters that health officials could not rule out rumors that poor sanitation at a UN peacekeeping compound caused the outbreak.

"We will likely never know where this came from," he said, pointing out the difficulties in pinpointing the source of the disease.

But experience shows that cholera has an increased chance of spreading in countries where infant mortality is high, such as in Haiti, he added.

"We hope that given the current preventive and treatment measures we have... the biggest burden will be early on in the epidemic, and that's what's we're seeing now," Menon said.

"But we expect that cases will continue and the organism will be present in the environment for a number of years."

Source: Terra Daily.
Link: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Unpredictable_cholera_to_afflict_Haiti_for_years_US_999.html.

Saudi faces daunting task of post-hajj cleanup

by Staff Writers
Mina, Saudi Arabia (AFP) Nov 18, 2010

As the hajj pilgrimage nears its end, Saudi authorities in Mecca face the daunting task of cleaning up after pilgrims who have turned the streets of Muslim holy sites into a garbage dump.

During the short hajj season, it has become almost impossible to walk in the streets of the tent city of Mina, outside Mecca, without a mask due to an overwhelming stench which has pervaded every open space.

Islamic teaching stresses cleanliness, with Muslims taught from an early age that "cleanliness is half of faith" in the words of the prophet.

But as male pilgrims performed the rite of shaving heads on Tuesday, the streets of Mina and the neighborhood of the Grand Mosque in Mecca were strewn with hair and used razors.

The mess appeared to be mostly the work of "unauthorized" pilgrims, without the official permits, who flooded the valley.

Some 2.8 million pilgrims are estimated to have taken part in this year's hajj, almost 800,000 more than expected based on the number of permits issued, according to Saudi authorities.

Those pilgrims with no places reserved in equipped camps or hotel rooms in Mecca have squatted on pavements, under bridges and on rocky terraces. And where police turned a blind eye, they camped in the street.

Colorful bedsheets and blankets were stretched between walls and lamp-posts for shade. Those who were better prepared erected beach tents.

Many of the illegal pilgrims, who flouted the strict rule of "No permit, No hajj," were foreigners who live in Saudi Arabia, although some were Saudi nationals.

"I work in Mecca, so I decided to perform the hajj," said an Egyptian who declined to give his name as he sat on a mat spread under the elevated track of the new Mashair Railway.

These pilgrims, many of them in families with young children, ate and drank in the same place. As their litter grew around them, some admitted that they were at fault.

"We are the reason behind this mess," said Adnan Naji, 26, sitting with two fellow Egyptians on a straw mat on the road in Mina, while trash flowed out of a bin three meters (yards) away.

He explained that some people could not afford to pay for a legal hajj through a licensed group that would charge for decent accommodation, so they "sacrifice for hajj."

"We came to answer Allah's call for hajj," said Al-Sayyed Ali Jad, 24, who works in construction, like Naji.

The small mat they shared was clearly not enough to seat three of them. Their legs were stretched on the dirty tarmac, not far from a stream of stinking water flowing on the road surface.

But their partner on the mat, Nada Qassem, 35, said the surroundings did not shock him as his situation back home was not much different.

"My standard of living is not high so I am not shocked by this," said Qassem, who came from Egypt to work as a bus driver during the hajj, a chance to do the pilgrimage for free.

"Most of us do not have the means to pay for hajj," he said.

Meanwhile, binmen in yellow overalls toiled non-stop, pushing overflowing orange bins, sweeping the streets and loading large garbage containers onto lorries.

The situation in the Arafat plain, where pilgrims spent the hajj peak day on Monday, and in Mecca itself was not better. Streets around the Grand Mosque were awash with litter.

Source: Terra Daily.
Link: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Saudi_faces_daunting_task_of_post-hajj_cleanup_999.html.

Swastikas found on Israeli school's fence

KFAR SABA, Israel, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Police in Kfar Saba, Israel, investigated the spray-painting of Nazi swastikas on a kindergarten fence and walls of nearby buildings, officials said.

No arrests had been made, Ynetnews reported Friday.

A guard discovered at least 10 swastikas, painted on cloth attached to the fence and spray-painted on walls of buildings Thursday. The guard then contacted police, investigators said.

Municipal workers of the central Israeli city were dispatched to remove the graffiti, The Jerusalem Post reported.

In April, Tel Aviv police investigated the drawing of swastikas and Palestinian flags on a synagogue in the Jewish-Arab Ajami neighborhood in Jaffa.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2010/11/19/Swastikas-found-on-Israeli-schools-fence/UPI-75121290175210/.

Call for Chinese workers irks Moscow mayor

MOSCOW, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- A Moscow department's call for more than 1,000 Chinese nationals to work in the city has angered Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, officials said.

The city labor and employment department submitted a request to invite 1,146 Chinese nationals into Moscow, RIA Novosti reported.

"I would like to know who has given you the right to submit such requests on behalf of the (city) government without notifying anybody?" Sobyanin asked department chief Oleg Neterebsky.

Neterebsky said Chinese nationals are allowed to come to Russia to work in Oriental medical centers and in Chinese restaurants. But Sobyanin said too many Chinese are illegally taking positions in other jobs that should be filled by Russians.

"I have nothing against migrants -- the city needs them. I just want to understand what kind of specialists are needed and in what areas," Sobyanin said.

Sobyanin ordered the labor department to publish complete data on migrant workers on its Web site by Saturday to make labor issues more transparent.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2010/11/19/Call-for-Chinese-workers-irks-Moscow-mayor/UPI-61311290173831/.