Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, May 29, 1990 TAG: 9005290135
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From The Associated Press and The Washington Post
DATELINE: MOSCOW LENGTH: Medium
Tempers flared over the rules, which were intended to curb a wave of panic-buying that started after the government announced Thursday it was raising prices as part of a transition to a market economy.
In Armenia, the republic's government declared a day of mourning Monday following the deaths of at least 22 persons in a series of armed clashes between Soviet Interior Ministry troops and members of nationalist groups.
Armenian Communist Party chief Vladimir Morsisyan went on television to appeal for calm after the bloodshed Sunday at Yerevan's main railroad station and an army base south of the city. A planned march through the republic's capital to commemorate Armenia's short-lived declaration of independence in 1918 became a commemoration of the dead.
The Armenian news agency Armenpress said that 20 civilians and two soldiers had died in the incidents, which the authorities have blamed on nationalist groups trying to take weapons from the army. More than 50 people on both sides were injured, several critically.
In an interview, Soviet Interior Minister Vadim Bakatin accused the Armenian authorities of failing to do enough to curb the arming of nationalist groups in the republic following clashes along the border with Azerbaijan earlier this year.
In Moscow stores on Monday, shouting matches erupted between cashiers and shoppers who did not know about the rules. Long lines moved slowly as the internal passports were scrutinized for the stamp that proved residency.
"Passports, citizens, passports!" demanded a cashier at food store No. 44. "Moscow or Moscow region only!"
She refused to take the money of people who had forgotten their documents, but softened her stance toward an elderly man who said he was a veteran of World War II.
At supermarket No. 30 on Gorky Street, about 70 people jammed the front door after the lunch break. Three policemen waved truncheons to clear a narrow path so shoppers could exit once they had their purchases. The police hit no one with their truncheons.
"I quite agree with the passport measures!" said Valentina Guskova, a 63-year-old pensioner from the Moscow region who was shopping in a bread store on Gorky Street. "Those people from other regions, they used to flock to Moscow and strip shop shelves bare. Today, I can at least buy something for my grandchildren here."
The residency requirement will be in effect in Moscow for two weeks.
by CNB