Mongolia Brief May 2, 2014 Part III
Military
competition showcases ‘Splendor of Mongolian Soldiers’
May 4 (UB Post)
Champions of the “Splendor of Mongolian Soldiers” competition, held among
military units of Mongolia, were named on Saturday.
The competition showcased
the marching skills of the military units and awarded the top performing units.
The Office of
the Ulaanbaatar City Governor, Ministry of Defense, General Staff of the
Mongolian Armed Forces, General Authority for Border Protection and National
Emergency Management Agency organized the competition in two stages.
Nine military
units were shortlisted in the final stage. Fourth place went to Border Military
Unit no.0164 headed by Commander Battsengel. They were presented with a prize
of four million MNT and a set of wind musical instruments.
Military Unit
no.120, led by Dommander Kh.Bandi, showed the best marching skill and had the
best maintained unit building, which earned them first place.
Second place
went to Border Military Unit no.151 commanded by N.Ganbold, while Military Unit
no.353, led by Colonel A.Munkhbat, secured third place.
Commanders of
top the military units were each granted two-room apartments in accordance with
an Ulaanbaatar City Governor’s Ordinance.
During the
award ceremony at Central Square, soldiers who had completed their military
services received completion certificates. District labor divisions and
vocational training officials were there to register job-seeking soldiers.
The ceremony
showed the great splendor of Mongolian soldiers with well-organized marches by
the units for spectators.
One of the
soldiers who received a completion certificate, P.Purevdash said, “I joined
Military Unit no.189 immediately after my high school graduation in May 2013,
as it is the duty of all men in Mongolia. Now, I have already completed my year
of service with my fellow brothers. Time indeed flies.”
“I am very glad
that I have served the military respectfully. My service in the military helped
me realize and learn a lot, which will surely help my future and career,” he
added.
Premier
N.Altankhuyag makes statement regarding projects financed by Chinggis Bond
May 4 (UB Post)
Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag made a statement regarding projects financed by
the Chinggis Bond, during a joint Parliamentary session meeting. As of March
31, 2014, financing equivalent to 1.3 trillion MNT has been issued to 10
projects from the 1.5 billion USD in Chinggis Bond resources.
Chinggis Bond
money is being spent on provincial road projects to connect aimag centers with
Ulaanbaatar, the “Street” project, Ulaanbaatar’s engineering network,
infrastructural projects, new railway projects, Tavantolgoi, a power plant in
Egyn River, “Byant Ukhaa 1” apartment town, and in supporting industrialization
in the construction and agricultural sectors, N.Altankhuyag said, and
introduced the process and results of the projects.
For the
provincial road projects, Dundgobi and Bayankhongor aimags have been connected
to Ulaanbaatar with paved road or highways. Road construction to Umnugobi,
Dornod, Sukhbaatar and Khuvsgul aimags are expected to be complete by August.
As of today, construction of 930 kilometers of an 1,800 kilometer road being
built by financing from the Chinggis Bond, has been completed. Road
construction performance is at 68 percent, stated Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag.
A total of
1,800 kilometers of railway will be constructed from
Tavantolgoi-Sainshand-Choibalsan and Tavantolgoi-Gashuunsukhait as part of the
New Railway project. The 164.2 million USD construction of 267 kilometers of
railway is being financed by the Chinggis bond. Performance of the 267
kilometers of railroad construction is at 25 percent, according to Prime
Minister’s statement.
For UB’s Street
project, focused on reducing traffic congestion, air pollution and improving
city planning, the renovation of 33 separate four-way road crossings has been
planned. Currently, renovations have taken place at 17 of these crossings. The
first phase of financing of a highway to be constructed along the Tuul and
Selbe rivers has been issued. Construction work will start this June.
A total of 92
projects worth 416 billion MNT have been planned for implementation in 2013 and
2014, to improve Ulaanbaatar’s engineering networks and infrastructure. In the
first phase, Development Bank will issue financing of 200 billion MNT, and has
delivered 101.8 billion MNT now. Within the mid-term target program “New
Construction”, the drinking water, sewage, electricity, heating and cable
engineering system issues of seven apartment towns and 10 ger districts will be
completely resolved. The performance of a 30-year contract is now at 70
percent.
A financing
contract of 269 billion MNT to promote five sectors, including wool, cashmere,
milk, sewn products and garden agriculture, was signed by the Ministry of
Industry and Agriculture and Golomt Bank. Golomt Bank has received the
materials and documents of 189 companies, and has issued loans of 53.7 billion
MNT to 53 companies.
Construction of
a power plant with a capacity of 450 megawatts at Tavantolgoi coal mine has
received financing of 14 million USD from the planned 16 million USD financing
in the first phase. Also, a decision was made to grant 34 million USD from the
Chinggis Bond for the Egyn River hydro-electric power plant project.
The government
is financing the construction of 28 apartment buildings for 1,764 families,
named Buyant Ukhaa 1 Apartment Town, which will belong to the state apartment
corporation. The apartments designated for young families, the elderly and
public servants, will cost one million and 280 thousand MNT per square meter.
The construction of nine apartment buildings which will house 567 families has
been completed and the rest of the buildings will be available by the second
quarter of this year.
The total cost
of the Factory project to produce houses is 42 million USD. Erel LLC invested
13.1 million USD and the government has issued financing of 14 million USD from
the Chinggis Bond. The project is expected to produce houses and is expected to
reduce the air, ground and water pollution of Ulaanbaatar. The project will
produce houses for 5,000 families and provide homes to 184 thousand UB
households, reported Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag at the parliamentary meeting.
Mongolian
Youth Federation declares May ‘Cycling Month’
May 4 (UB Post)
The Mongolian Youth Federation (MYF) has declared May as “Cycling Month” and
has organized various bicycle tours, parades, workshops and bicycle rentals
available throughout Ulaanbaatar as part of their “Cycling Ulaanbaatar”
initiative.
MYF started
organizing regular bicycle tours two weeks ago. The next bicycle tour “Bike
Date” will be a family outing. Participating families will be able to have fun
and contribute to the improvement of their health at the same time. The tour is
scheduled for May 10.
Cycling
Ulaanbaatar is aimed at motivating city residents to ride bicycles and improve
their health, while avoiding one of the most pressing problems in Ulaanbaatar,
traffic congestion.
Mongolia’s
Media Laws Threaten Press Freedom
May 4 (UB Post)
For more than 70 years, one fixture of Mongolian life was not unlike that of
its closest neighbors. During the Soviet period, the sole source of information
in the then-satellite state was the state-run Mongolian National Broadcaster.
Twenty years
on, and Mongolians now enjoy access to a growing media market. High-speed
Internet and more than 500 news outlets are available to most of the country’s
three million people, with a recent resource boom which continues to bring
about rapid change and development.
Yet a range of
broad and ill-defined laws continue to prevent journalists from publishing
quality investigative material, without significant risk.
THREATS TO PRESS FREEDOM
In Mongolia, a
heavily concentrated press largely owned by prominent figures sees critical or
unflattering stories regularly censored. Exposure of corrupt practice can often
leave journalists in fear of prosecution under the country’s criminal
defamation laws.
Recently
adopted Freedom of Information statues often conflict with privacy laws, thus
achieving little by way of greater transparency. Even fewer laws act to protect
journalistic practice, the confidentiality of sources or whistle-blowers.
Investigative work undertaken by journalists rather than police or intelligence
agencies could even be deemed to violate the constitution.
Coupling these
restraints with state secrecy laws merely serves to reinforce a sobering
“chilling effect.”
Article 16 of
Mongolia’s constitution guarantees rights of free expression, thought, speech,
assembly and press. This ensures the right of media and citizens alike to “seek
and receive” information.
Yet press
advocates emphasize that these constitutional rights do not include the right
to “impart” information, “regardless of frontiers,” as international law
stipulates. In practice, this means that often other laws will act to
circumvent these constitutional protections.
CRIMINAL DEFAMATION AND LIBEL LAWS
Perhaps the
greatest prosecutorial threat to Mongolian journalism can be found in the
country’s defamation laws, which act to criminalize slander, defamation and
libel. Such laws are regularly used by prominent figures — namely, individual
politicians and increasingly, powerful businesspeople — as a means of shielding
themselves from public criticism. While criticism of any kind, say press
advocates, is often deemed tantamount to defamation.
Under Mongolia
law, defamation is a criminal offense. Article 111.2 of the Criminal Code stipulates
that the spread of libel “to the public by means of mass media” is punishable
by a fine equal to 51 to 150 times the monthly minimum wage — 9.79 million to
28.9 million MNT (5,685 USD to 16,782 USD) — or incarceration for three to six
months. These sums would be more than enough to bankrupt smaller independent
news outlets.
Between 1999
and 2011, 313 defamation cases were reported to have involved media officials.
Yet journalists
are said to often retract their work before cases goes to trial. Editors may
also be held liable for publication of material deemed defamatory.
Judges recently
issued statements prohibiting the press from reporting on defamation trials
involving media officials as proceedings were underway.
STRICT EVIDENTIARY RULES
Under Mongolian
law, journalists also must bear the burden of proof, evidencing that what
they’ve published is true and accurate. Yet strict evidentiary rules have
prevented some journalists from mounting a strong defense. Evidence has been
deemed inadmissible in cases where documentary proof was not notarized as
original copy.
Such rules
significantly hamper a journalist’s capacity to prove their innocence. This
applies especially in investigative cases whereby access to original source
documents is not always guaranteed — in which case the law does not provide for
a “reasonable publication” defense.
Recently
amended laws on crime prevention do not yet list defamation as a criminal
offense. Yet press advocates fear that the current Parliament will soon act to
demand its inclusion, given that a recent list of plaintiffs in defamation
cases against media officials is said to include members of the ruling
Democratic Party.
LACK OF LEGAL PROTECTION FOR
WHISTLE-BLOWERS
Mongolian law
sees few protections in place to ensure confidentiality of sources is
maintained. Nor are there recognized legal protections for whistle-blowers.
Journalists
often face pressure from political, judicial and intelligence officials to give
up the names of their sources. There is no legal requirement specifying that
journalists comply with such demands. Article 139 of the Criminal Code offers
some protection for “a journalist’s professional activities that are consistent
with the law.” Yet the statute does not specify what constitutes legal “professional
activities.”
Press advocates
have expressed their concerns given a prevailing view among the government and
judicial officials that investigations remain the purview of intelligence
services and police.
Under
Mongolia’s Constitution, investigations can technically only be carried out by
police, prosecutors or intelligence services. This means that a journalist’s
recorded interviews, notes, tapes, even photos, if deemed “investigative
material,” could well violate the law.
In 2009 local
media freedom institutes reported numerous Mongolian journalists had been
threatened or attacked in the course of their careers. One in six Mongolian
journalists had received “improper reactions,” often from those directly
affected by critical content. Almost 20 percent of those received severe
threats of violence, including death threats.
CENSORSHIP AS OWNERSHIP: IS MONGOLIA’S
MEDIA STATE-CONTROLLED?
Media
industries elsewhere face significant decline in revenue and reach. Yet
Mongolia’s media has thus far bucked these trends.
In 2009
Mongolians enjoyed access to regular news from almost 400 news outlets. By the
first quarter of 2013, the number reached 555 — an all-time high. Extraordinary
figures, given a population of less than three million people.
Prominent
government officials and powerful business figures are said to own the vast
majority of the country’s news media outlets. Direct government censorship is
explicitly outlawed in Mongolia’s constitution. Yet by simply buying up media
outlets, the country’s most powerful are then able to apply pressure and where
necessary, determine the nature of news content.
Yet exact
figures are hard to come by. While legislation states that media ownership and
investment shares be made public, often media outlets will submit only a
company’s registered name, in which the names of individual investors are not
disclosed.
As Globe
International President Naranjargal Khashkhuu wryly explains, “It is amazing
that all these media outlets can all survive in this small market. So we must
ask, who feeds them?”
In a recent
interview with DW Akademie, Mongolian Press Institute Executive Director
Munkhmandakh Myagmar went on to explain that:
“[D]evelopment
is not going based on market principles because the media does not survive on
revenues from advertising or sales. Instead the media exists based on financial
support or subsidies from politicians. In turn they are obliged to provide
information that is wanted by politicians. This makes journalism in Mongolia
extremely unhealthy.”
Media outlets
are often called upon to sign “agreements of co-operation” with advertisers.
These “blocking” provisions will then contractually prevent media from
distributing any “negative information” about entities from which they receive
funds for advertising.
STATE MEDIA BUDGET FIGURES NOT DISCLOSED
Media advocates
say that while the government releases an annual budget for media development,
the public remains in the dark as to which outlets receive the vast bulk of
funding.
“In 2012 the
Parliament of Mongolia had some three billion MNT in its media funding budget,”
says one press advocate. “Yet one particular television station is said to have
reserved for it 700 million MNT of the funding, while others didn’t receive any
money, at all. There is no public discussion, so the public is not aware who is
getting how much. It makes state funding another form of government
censorship.”
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION … IN THEORY
In 2011, in
response to recommendations from both the UN Human Rights Council and local rights
groups, Mongolia adopted its first national Freedom of Information (FOI) Law.
Yet advocates suggest that FOI procedures are unworkable, conflict with other
laws, and demonstrate the government’s lack of commitment to the law’s
implementation.
In 2012 a
coalition of civil society actors sought to more closely examine the annual
state budget. Together they lodged some 29 FOI requests to government agencies.
Only one agency provided a single response before rejecting the request on
grounds of violation of individual privacy.
A long list of
broad and ill-defined exemptions to FOI (Article 18) acts to curb publication
of detrimental information related to national security, the “public interest
of Mongolia,” matters of competition, intellectual property or private material
relating to the “lawful interests” of individuals or organizations.
So while laws
on anti-corruption oblige public officials to disclose their assets and income
records, under the law of individual privacy, the information on the properties
and net worth of public officials remain a closely kept secret. This helps
explain why local media will sometimes report on a politician’s (disclosed)
number of livestock, vehicles and other properties, rather than their net
value.
STATE SECRECY LAWS
A team of
journalists recently tested the responsiveness of government agencies to FOI
requests. Government agencies are legally obligated to respond to such requests
within a maximum 14 working day period. The journalists sought information
regarding the criminal trial and subsequent execution of famed revolutionaries
during the early 1920s.
Yet under a
broad State Secrets Act, execution notices remain a matter of state secrecy.
Documents related to capital punishment are to remain a state secret without limitation
— that is, never to be declassified.
The journalists
ran significant risks in even requesting such information. Individuals can run
afoul of the State Secrets law by simply requesting that information be
released — that is, a possible eight years imprisonment for simply “seeking”
information deemed secret under the law’s sweeping list of State Secrets, which
covers almost 60 broad topics ranging from foreign policy to economics, science
to technology, defense to intelligence.
Thus,
journalists on the foreign policy beat might do best to avoid
never-to-be-declassified “document(s) describing official policy and opinion of
Mongolia on cooperation with other countries, all kind of information and
reports provided by other countries through accredited manners.”
Instead some
may practice self-censorship, directly drawing their reports from official
press releases rather than risk running afoul of the law. Such constraints may
seem somewhat anachronistic at a time when growing Internet connectedness is
said to subvert the influence of state-owned media.
At a recent
investigative journalism training session in Ulaanbaatar, media trainers from
the UK spoke about privacy and recent moves by major news outlets to publish
NSA-related material. The audience of Mongolian journalists asked: “Yes, but
how do you fund it?”
Perhaps there
is a movement, not yet wholly defined, to enhance press freedom that will
likely require new funding models as well as a digital shift.
Only then,
equipped with a strong grasp of local laws as well as their constitutional
rights to freedom of information, speech and expression, might Mongolian
journalists act to loosen the grip of the powerful on public debate.
Lisa
Gardner is a journalist and media trainer currently based in Ulaanbaatar,
Mongolia. Her work speaks to conflict, new media and human rights in Asia and
places particular focus on questions of digital security and freedom of
expression.
Erchim
FC claims first victory at AFC President’s Cup
May 4 (UB Post)
Erchim FC claimed its first victory at the Group C tournament of the Asian
Football Confederation (AFC) President’s Cup 2014 by beating Cambodia’s
Svarieng FC with 3:1 on the third day of the tournament on Saturday.
The Mongolian
team will play against Manang Marshyangdi FC of Nepal today at 5 p.m.
Ulaanbaatar is
hosting the Group C tournament for the first time and the matches are taking
place at the football field of the Mongolian Football Federation.
S.Gal-Erdene, a
19-year-old player of Erchim FC, scored three goals in the match against
Cambodia.
Over 3,000
supporters of Erchim came to see the match and were delighted with the victory.
The first match
of the Group C tournament was Cambodia versus Nepal, and Manang of Nepal
hammered its opponent 6:3.
It is Erchim
FC’s third time competing in the AFC President’s Cup and the club placed fourth
in last year’s cup.
Aimag
clusters
May 4 (UB Post)
It is not going to be enough to evaluate the development of our aimags just by
looking at the number of strong wrestlers, fast racehorses, senior government
officials, and celebrity artists they have produced. We need to focus more on
what value those aimags are creating besides the extraction of mineral
resources, their own expenditures, and what competitive advantages they have
gained over others.
The wealth of a
country is not necessarily dependent on its comparative advantages such as
natural resources, access to the sea, and cheap labor. However, livelihood and
quality of life are dependent on what the nation is creating at what cost.
Therefore,
productivity is a basic measurement of development. It will be more precise to
measure the development of a nation and its local provinces by evaluating the
total value they create using the inputs of labor, material, and financial
resources.
WHAT IMPROVES PRODUCTIVITY?
Levels of
development are often defined by the competitiveness of businesses and
companies. Every business acquires its competitive advantage by comparing
itself with the best of the world and finding room for improvement. However,
there needs to be fierce competition between domestic businesses and companies
before a few of them become capable of entering the international market. Due
to the fierceness of market competition, varying capability of suppliers, and
high demand from domestic clients, companies are required to improve their
competitiveness, thus, strongly establish their position in the market while
producing huge profits.
In order to
create a competitive advantage, companies face the need to perfect the quality
of their goods and services, renew the process of creating valuebles, and bring
about innovation. An advantage can also be acquired through redesigning
products, introducing new marketing ideas, and providing training aimed at
improving the efficiency of employees.
By the 1960s,
Japan started working to make products developed by others more compact and
user-friendly. As a result, they brought about a big change in the production
of home appliances, not only inside the nation but throughout the world. They
contributed greatly to increasing the total production and export of
televisions, radios, air conditioners, and heaters.
Innovation
today requires a particular skill to receive and process information. New
initiatives can be triggered by many factors such as the introduction of a new
company into the market, emergence of an unconventional leader, and a decision
by a company to enter a different industry. In other words, innovation is the
result of extraordinary efforts. New ideas are developed when there are tough
situations and immediate threats to a business.
Fair
competition between companies in a given industry boosts productivity.
CONDITIONS FOR IMPROVING PRODUCTIVITY
In order to
sustain its growth, a company needs to not only acquire competitiveness but
also maintain it. Korean companies first took over Japan in the television
industry and later introduced a change in the role of televisions. They were
the first country to offer a service that allowed viewers to watch TV programs
at a convenient time, use wireless connections to browse personal media files,
and apply computer functions to televisions. Also, the Korean-driven competition
between mobile phone manufacturers has given consumers an opportunity to choose
from a larger pool of products.
Harvard
professors concluded that a company’s location is essential to acquiring
competitiveness. The word “business cluster” is translated as “khongortsog” in
Mongolian. Kh.Gombojav came up with the translation of this term in 1951, along
with its definition, which reads, “a geographical concentration of
interconnected industries, diversified suppliers, logistics companies,
industrial associations, and universities in a particular field.”
We need to talk
about the existing possibility to establish a business cluster in each aimag in
Mongolia. If we pursue a policy to support the emergence of many companies in
the most appropriate, culturally adequate industry of a given aimag and
increase their competition in the market, the productivity of those companies
will increase significantly.
Companies
compete with each other to obtain the most advanced technology and the most
skilled workforce to produce the best products and services. Market competitors
become stronger if they operate in the same town or personally know each other.
Three of the best motorcycle manufacturers in Japan reside in Hamamatsu, while
more than 100 decorative tile producers are concentrated in the town of
Sassuolo in Italy. Similarly, there are about 300 crop producers in Selenge
aimag. This concentration is helping them improve their productivity every
year. Darkhan-Uul aimag has the potential to become a cluster for the leather
goods and construction material industries. Market competitors that reside and
operate in the same area demand fair competition from each other.
ROLE OF GOVERNMENT
It is time for
our government to conduct a policy aimed at developing industrial clusters in
aimags and supporting their products in acquiring international competitiveness
by encouraging market competition at the aimag level.
The government
should also provide support in improving the quality of primary and secondary
education, building basic infrastructure, and connecting businesses to research
and development. One of the primary roles of the government is to set standards
and requirements regarding health, safety, and environment, and ensure that
companies are compliant with the rules. Sweden sets particularly high standards
in the living environment of city dwellers and influenced Atlas Copco, a
Swedish industrial company, to invent silent compressors that were later
introduced to many of the largest cities in the world.
When the government
sets prices and controls the exchange rates, it produces negative impacts on
market competition and productivity in the long term. If a regulation from the
government fails to achieve its purpose, its forced implementation costs a lot
because it affects many business relations. The government should be setting
standards instead of issuing business permits and not allow a monopoly to be
established in any given industry.
If the
government gets involved in the business sector, businesses get addicted to the
“drugs” dealt by the government such as soft loans, procurement offers, and
means of protection provided by the government. The only areas the government
should involve itself in are entering the international market, preparing a
skilled workforce, and building basic infrastructure such as roads, electric
power, and water distribution.
The wealth of a
nation is created by its companies and businesses, the productivity of which
determines the nation’s level of development. The main factor that enhances
productivity is not the government, but free competition. If many companies are
concentrated in one location, market competition becomes fiercer. Each of our
aimags needs to establish an industrial cluster that is built on their
advantages.
Translated by B.AMAR
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