
This two-page New
York Times article entitled "Where Chess Is King and the People Are
the Pawns" requires registration, which is a painless process, free of
charge. You can read the same article without registration in the International
Herald Tribune.
The author, Seth Mydans, describes a "shimmering vision has been brought
to life in Elista, the capital of the Russian republic of Kalmykia, a monument
to the power of ego over nature, not to mention common sense and even reason.
Its name is Chess City." It is like a glassed-in Biosphere on Mars. But
meanwhile, "for miles around – in fact for almost all the rest of
Kalmykia – 300,000 people live in poverty on the barren plains, where
tank trucks deliver drinking water and where dried sheep dung, hoarded through
the summer, fuels stoves in winter."
The article is highly critical of the Republic's "whimsical strongman"
Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who is also the respected leader of the World Chess Federation.
"Sweet-faced and only 42 years old, Mr. Ilyumzhinov has found the tens
of millions of dollars not only to build his dream dome but to play host in
this land of sheep and camels to a series of major tournaments." In his
pursuit of chess, Mydans writes, Mr. Ilyumzhinov has consorted with unlikely
allies, including Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi of Libya (and formerly including
Saddam Hussein), in addition to a well-dressed network of regional operators
and money men.
The president's political opponents say he has beggared the country to pay
for his playthings, which include a soccer team that hires expensive players
from abroad. Among other things, several opposition leaders said in interviews,
he has taken food from the mouths of Kalmykia's children by suspending family
subsidies. Chess officials have estimated that Ilyumzhinov has spent between
$30 million and $50 million on these activities.
Arguing against these critics are people like Florencio Campomanes of the
Philippines, a past president of the chess federation, who calls them "yappers."
"Blah blah blah, blah blah blah," he said. How could Mr. Ilyumzhinov
have squeezed the cost of Chess City out of this little crumb of land populated
by hungry and thirsty people? "There isn't that much money in the national
budget." The real source of the money? "He's a businessman!"
Mr. Campomanes cried, and that seemed to put an end to that.