An immodest proposal

An immodest proposal

A 35-year-old migrant labourer from Dagestan was arrested trying to get into the Kremlin in an attempt, he later explained, to become President Dmitry Medvedev’s son-in-law.

The man was stopped after loitering near the Kremlin’s Spasskye gates on Red Square, a gate the president only uses on formal occasions.

According to the Moskovksy Komsomolets newspaper, he was hoping to meet the Russian president to ask for his daughter's hand in marriage. He hoped tying the knot would help him escape financial hardship.

Russia’s migrant worker population fluctuates between 4 and 9 million a year. Many of them travel from impoverished former Soviet Republics to Russia’s big cities in search of work. But since the economic crisis hit, thousands have found themselves in dire straights.

At the beginning of the year, the Russian president introduced major reforms to give migrant workers a degree of security. Critics, however, say the move only undermines the domestic work-force, creating tensions and fuelling a rise in xenophobic attacks. Take a look at this article in the Moscow Times.

Unfortunately for the amorous Dagestani labourer, President Medvedev only has a son.

The man was taken to a mental hospital for a full medical assessment.