'Win a wife' radio promo draws anger

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EDMONTON, Alberta, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- A Canadian radio station's promotional contest where male listeners can "win" a Russian bride is drawing political criticism.

The Bear 100.3 rock FM station in Edmonton, Alberta, launched the "Win a Wife" campaign this week in conjunction with a company named Volga Girl, which has offices in Russia, Canada and the United States.

The online entry form on the station's Web site tells contestants if they are "interested in potential holy matrimony with a hot foreign chick, fill it (the entry form) out to the best of your abilities," the Edmonton Sun said.

The station said the winner will receive roundtrip airfare to an undisclosed Russian city to meet a potential bride, 13 nights of accommodations and $500 cash.

The provincial minster of employment and immigration, Thomas Lukaszuk, issued a harsh rebuke to the station offering the contest.

"As a father of two daughters, the whole idea of winning a wife doesn't bode with me well at all," he said. The Conservative minister said he had also pulled his party's advertising from the station.

"The implied comparison of a wife being a prize that can be won like any other object just doesn't sound good and it doesn't feel right," Lukaszuk told the Toronto Star's western bureau.

The station's brand director, Rob Vavrek, told the Sun the promotion was in line with TV reality matchmaking shows such as "The Bachelor" and "Bachelorette."