Mongolia

Mongolia is a landlocked country in central Asia, located between Russia and China. It is vast and sparsely populated, with a population of 2,751,314 (according to 2004 estimates) living on territory roughly twice the size of Texas. Until the 1960s, the majority of the population was engaged in traditional nomadic herding activities, but since then there has been a shift toward urban centers, in particular the capital of Ulaanbaatar.

Mongolia is best known for its conquests in the thirteenth century under the tribal leader Genghis Khan (c. 1167–1227), who unified the Mongol tribes in 1206 and led them in a series of conquests that established the largest land empire the world has ever known. Genghis Khan's grandson Kublai Khan (1215–1294) conquered China, and the Mongols were eventually absorbed into the Chinese system of government. Their empire disintegrated, and Mongolia was ultimately subjected to rule by China's Manchu Empire. After the Chinese Revolution of 1911, a period of turmoil ensued, but eventually an independent country was established in 1921 as the Mongolian People's Republic, the world's second communist country.

Soviet influence was great, and Mongolia's leaders followed their Soviet counterparts for nearly seventy years, with little de facto independence. A single political party, the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP), held a monopoly on power. The party presided over periods of brutal Stalinist repression in the 1930s under Horloogiyn Choybalsan (1895–1952) and a long period of stagnation in the 1970s under Yumjaagiyn Tsedenbal (1916–1991), known as Mongolia's Brezhnev—referring to Leonid Brezhnev (1906–1982), who ruled the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1982.

In 1989, in response to similar events in Eastern Europe, a group of intellectuals led a series of protests in the main square of Ulaanbaatar, calling for democratization, human rights, and market reforms. The MPRP, deciding to reform itself rather than repress the demonstrators, amended the existing socialist constitution to allow for multiple parties and a bicameral parliament. The MPRP also appointed a new head of the party, Punsalmaagiyn Ochirbat (b. 1942), who was subsequently elected in a democratic election. In the summer of 1990, elections to the new parliament led to a multiparty coalition in the lower house of parliament, the Baga Hural. The reforms also established a constitutional drafting commission, and within eighteen months a draft was adopted, with some modification, by both houses of parliament. The new constitution took effect on February 12, 1992, establishing a democratic form of government.

The 1992 constitution calls for a single unicameral parliament, the State Great Hural, consisting of seventy-six seats. A directly elected president shares executive authority with a prime minister, who is appointed by the parliament. The president has the power to veto legislation (subject to a parliamentary override) and also has powers over national security and foreign affairs. This post was held by Natsagiin Bagabandi (b. 1950) from 1997 to 2005; however, in accordance with the two-term limit set by the constitution, a new president, Nambaryn Enkhbayar (b. 1958), was elected in 2005. The prime minister heads the day-to-day management of government.

There is a three-level court system, headed by the Supreme Court, which is responsible for deciding civil, criminal, and administrative cases. In addition, a nine-member Constitutional Court has the power to review legislation and government action for conformity with the constitution. However, a decision by the court that legislation is unconstitutional can be rejected by the parliament, in which case the full court must hear the case again to uphold the decision.

A major constitutional crisis occurred between 1996 and 2002 after the Constitutional Court held that members of parliament could not serve as ministers in the government. Parliament subsequently tried to legislate rules that would allow this, but this legislation was also rejected by the court. Eventually constitutional amendments were passed, but these too were struck down by the court. A stalemate ensued, but ultimately the court decided to uphold revised constitutional amendments.

Citizens have a wide range of constitutional freedoms and liberties, including rights to free speech, freedom of religion, political participation, and protection of the accused in the criminal justice system. The constitution guarantees the right to be free from torture and imprisonment. Although claims of outright torture or abuse are few, human rights groups have criticized conditions in the prison system as inadequate, particularly for juvenile offenders. There is good access to the court system, although there are complaints about the quality of the judiciary and corruption.

Mongolia's vigorous multiparty democracy has seen alternation in power between two major blocs: the formerly communist MPRP, which has adjusted its political program to social democracy, and an array of opposition parties that are loosely tied together in a democratic coalition. The MPRP has ruled for most of the democratic period but lost control of parliament for the first time in 1996. The MPRP regained power with an overwhelming victory in 2000 and held it until 2004, when the two parties split the parliament. A grand coalition was formed, and prominent democrat Tsahiagiyn Elbegdorj (b. 1963) selected as prime minister.

In addition to political parties, citizen participation occurs through a wide array of organized interest groups, including non-governmental organizations. Most of these have arisen since 1989 and range from advocacy to providing social services as their core activities. Several groups monitor the status of human rights protection and call attention to abuses when they occur. The media also enjoys

constitutional protection of freedom of the press but in recent years has allegedly been subject to pressure from the government in the form of moral legislation and selective tax laws. Still, the press is generally free and citizen participation quite active. Citizens also participate in local parliaments, called hurals, elected in each of the eighteen provinces and three major cities of Ulaanbaatar, Darhan, and Erdenet.

Mongolia's peaceful transition to democracy beginning in 1990 has been a model. By any measure, citizen participation is active, with voter turnout in national elections consistently above 80 percent, and an array of other channels for participation. It has a more vigorous democracy and better protection of human rights than any Central Asian country and at least as robust as any country in East Asia.

China; Parliamentary Systems.

Bawden, C. R. The Modern History of Mongolia. New York: Kegan Paul International, 1989.

Kotkin, Stephen and Bruce A. Elleman, eds. Mongolia in the Twentieth Century: Landlocked Cosmopolitan. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 1999.

Weatherford, J. McIver. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. New York: Crown, 2004.