Mongolia Brief April 15, 2014 Part II
Aimag governor meets UNDP deputy permanent representative
Ulaanbaatar,
April 15 (MONTSAME) On Tuesday, the governor of Dornogobi aimag P.Gankhuyag met
Mr Thomas Eriksson, the deputy permanent representative of the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) to Mongolia.
At the meeting,
they discussed issues on modernizing local governance, developing
specially-protected areas, urgent problems faced to the aimag and works to be
done through developmental programmes.
Mr Eriksson
reported that the UNDP plans to hold a training this month for members of the
Citizens’ Representatives Khurals of aimags and soums.
Stock exchange news for April 15
Ulaanbaatar,
April 15 (MONTSAME) At the Stock Exchange trades held Tuesday, a total of 30
thousand and 091 shares of 18 JSCs were traded costing MNT 26 million 766
thousand and 652.00.
"Genco
tour bureau" /16 thousand and 735 units/, "Ulaansan” /4,000 units/,
"Remikon” /3,001 units/, "Tavantolgoi” /1,894 units/ and "State
Department Store” /1,348 units/ were the most actively traded in terms of
trading volume, in terms of trading value--"Tavantolgoi" (MNT nine
million 449 thousand and 890), "Ulaansan" (MNT four million and 780
thousand), "APU" (MNT four million 208 and 940), "Genco tour
bureau" (MNT one million 392 thousand and 085) and "Shivee ovoo"
(MNT one million 191 thousand and 245).
The total
market capitalization was set at MNT one trillion 577 billion 016 million 767
thousand and 810. The Index of Top-20 JSCs was 15,566.97, decreasing by MNT
119.14 or 0.76% against the previous day.
Mongolian girl to receive prize from Quebec governor
Ulaanbaatar,
April 15 (MONTSAME) An 11th grade pupil in Canada’s Quebec province from
Mongolia Z.Anudari is to receive a prize from the province’s governor, the
news.mn website published Tuesday.
A Gatineau
city-based basketball team where she plays won the regional championship. She
has been awarded a right to receive the prize for being a key player in the
sport team, and has been selected as a foremost student in her school. She is
also an active participant of humanitarian actions.
The province’s
governor grants prizes named after him to those people who have succeeded for
its region.
‘A Day of Mongolia’ thrived on Chinggis Square
April 16 (UB
Post) Some dedicated Mongolians spent Monday outside at Central Square. They
gathered to attend a peaceful, public sit-in strike for “A Day of
Mongolia-2014”, held to show policymakers how citizens are living and what
challenges and difficulties they face.
The
participants believed that the authorities do not know how ordinary citizens
live, as they live near the State Palace and Zaisan area, and the West and East
central intersections. The strike organizers pointed out that almost all of the
one thousand chairs prepared for the event were populated.
Usually, elders
attend gatherings but they become desperate to go home as they get tired after
standing for hours, that’s why the decision was made to provide them with
chairs, explained the event organizers.
There were many
people who came with prepared posters stating the problems they face and the
issues they want the authorities to resolve. It was a two-day open gathering
for attendees to deliver petitions and comments on paper to members of
parliament.
The demands
gathered during the strike will be reviewed during the meeting of the Justice
Coalition. Leaders of some civil movements and Members of Parliament, including
O.Baasankhuu, attended to support the gathering crowd. Representatives from the
Union of Mongolian Tenants, merchants from Narantuul Market, as well as circus
performers took part in the meeting to state their opinions.
The following are comments from some sit-in attendees
about what issues they want delivered to decision makers, published in Undesnii
Shuudan Daily Newspaper.
Senior citizen M.Bold:
Banks are
robbing the elderly who are receiving a pension loan. I have borrowed around 10
million MNT under a two year-term pension loan. But the bank has withdrawn
around four million 400 thousand MNT. I have written a petition to Minister
S.Erdene, however, I still haven’t heard anything from him.
O.Doljinjav, 88 years old:
My son retired
after working for 26 years with the airport police. Now he is blind and tired a
lot. I worked for the state since I was 18 years old and retired in 1975. I get
300 thousand MNT. My pension is not enough to help my son, even to feed myself.
Is there any place that can help my son?
U.Rina, citizen of Khan-Uul district:
I worked and
served the state for 30 years and retired in 2008 with a monthly pension of 110
thousand MNT. It has been increased and has become 240 thousand MNT. I
came here today to tell state authorities that it is time to change the pension
policy.
Unit product traders behind Narantuul
market:
In the area we
are operating at the moment, over 100 traders used to earn a living selling
second-hand stuff. There are around four to five people in a trader’s family,
which means the issue touches upon the lives of 500 people. We didn’t beg for
any welfare from the government and we didn’t beg for food from anyone. But the
policemen are pressuring us to stop our trade. They seized our products and
never gave it back. They are treating us like dogs and the pressure and
bullying has gone out of control.
Citizen T.Serjee:
Elders are
allowed to be treated at traditional spas and resorts two times a year. Even
though half of the expenses are covered by the state, spa resorts are too expensive.
Is there any chance of taking care of this issue?
Member of Parliament G.Uyanga:
We have aimed
to show the authorities and decision makers today’s life in society, the way it
is without any additional fixes. I wish every state authority sitting in the
tall black buildings or the State Palace would come out of their rooms and be
introduced to real lives. I wish they realized why the decisions they are
making are not meeting reality. The majority of policymakers do not know what
lives are like for ordinary citizens and that’s why they make poor decisions.
Turquoise Hill announces first quarter 2014 production and update on project financing
April 16 (UB
Post) Canadian miner Turquoise Hill Resources on Monday announced its first
quarter 2014 production for Oyu Tolgoi and provided an update on project
financing.
Turquoise
reported that production at Oyu Tolgoi in the first quarter of this year was
heavily impacted by post commissioning issues, including rake blade failure in
both of the tailings thickeners, which caused the shutdown of one production
line for approximately seven weeks. Repairs to the rakes have been completed
and full production recommenced in late March. The concentrator also completed
a number of major planned shutdowns in the first quarter, including ball mill
relines and the first concave change in the primary crusher.
“Copper and
gold head grades increased in Q1’14 as the mine deepened. These higher grades
combined with ongoing improvement initiatives led to improved copper and gold
recoveries during the quarter. Also, during March 2014, Oyu Tolgoi processed
small volumes of ore from the high grade areas of the gold core,” said the
company.
“Concentrate
sales continue to accelerate and are matching current production. During the
second half of 2014, Oyu Tolgoi is expected to drawdown inventory. Oyu Tolgoi
will monitor production levels and if necessary, match them to meet customer
requirements, with the goal of returning to more normal levels of inventory by
the end of 2014.
“Oyu Tolgoi
expects to produce 135,000 to 160,000 tons of copper and 600,000 to 700,000
ounces of gold in concentrates for 2014.”
Update on Project Financing
Turquoise said
that all parties agreed to send requests to the project finance lenders to
extend the commitment letters for the financing of the underground development
at Oyu Tolgoi to September 30, 2014.
Turquoise Hill
Chief Executive Officer Kay Priestly said, “All parties remain committed to the
underground development of Oyu Tolgoi and to resolving the outstanding
shareholder issues. Constructive discussions between all parties have resulted
in significant progress being made in resolving the issues, and those
discussions are continuing.”
Turquoise Hill
Resources’ primary operation is its 66 percent interest in the Oyu Tolgoi
copper-gold-silver mine in southern Mongolia. Turquoise Hill also holds a 56
percent interest in Mongolian coal miner SouthGobi Resources.
Bad weather expected at western and central regions
April 16 (UB
Post) Temperatures are expected to drop followed by snow showers from today at
western regions of Mongolia, and throughout the nation starting from Thursday,
reported the National Agency for Meteorology, Hydrology and Environmental
Monitoring.
Wind speeds
will increase followed by dust storms at most regions, according to the agency.
Wind speed will
reach 12 to 14 meters per second from today, while Gobi regions will experience
a wind speed of 16 to 18 meters per second from tomorrow.
Western and
central regions will experience heavy snow today, while most of the remaining
provinces will experience snow falls tomorrow.
Mongolia gains two victories at Youth World Boxing Championship
April 16 (UB
Post) Mongolian boxer B.Tumurkhuyag defeated his opponent Edwin Tshabalala in
the men’s 49 kg weight category, while G.Battamir won his bout against South
Korea’s Han Younghun in the men’s 52 kg category on the first day of the Youth
World Boxing Championship, hosted by Sofia, Bulgaria. The event officially
launched on Monday.
A total of
seven men and three women from Mongolia are competing for medals at the
championship.
Both championship organizers and the Mongolian team are expecting promising results as Mongolian boxers earned decisive victories on the launch day.
Both championship organizers and the Mongolian team are expecting promising results as Mongolian boxers earned decisive victories on the launch day.
News website
www.aiba.org posted an article titled “Perfect Mongolians on Day 1” which
commented on the brilliant performances of Mongolian boxers on the first day.
Manila’s Partial Case
April 16 (UB
Post) The Mark News
Professor and
Associate Dean
Institute of International Studies
Fudan University
April 5, 2014
Institute of International Studies
Fudan University
April 5, 2014
China is now
facing challenges to its maritime claims. The Philippines has just filed a
lawsuit to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea against China over
a dispute concerning its fishing rights in the South China Sea.
Manila
considers itself to be solely entitled to all economic rights, including
fishing rights, in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), per the 1982 United
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Since China drew the
so-called “nine-dotted line” in 1947, claiming part of the South China Sea as its
own – including an area that is part of the Philippines’ EEZ – Manila has
demanded that Beijing yield its economic claim in the overlapping area claimed
by both countries.
But the
Philippines is telling the world an incomplete story. Sure, it has the right to
sue another country in the International Tribunal for its own reasons. However,
Manila should be mindful that a country has the right not to ratify a certain
international treaty, or to make a reservation when joining a particular
treaty. For instance, the United States has joined but not ratified the UNCLOS.
China has joined and ratified the UNCLOS, but with certain reservations.
While the
economic rights in the aforementioned overlapping area are significant, there
is a more fundamental issue here: the sovereignty of the islands and islets in
that area. China rightfully owned these rocks centuries before the UNCLOS. This
cannot be undone just because the UN convention addresses the fishing rights in
the waters surrounding these rocks. The UNCLOS is a treaty that addresses the
division and sharing of economic rights at sea, but not the issue of
sovereignty at sea.
A review of the
basic history is telling. In terms of sovereignty over those sea-based
territories, successive Chinese governments have claimed various islands,
islets, shoals, etc. in the South China Sea. During the Han dynasty, the
Chinese government brought Hainan Island under its jurisdiction. In the Tang
dynasty, Chinese control extended to the Nansha Islands (the Spratly Islands).
Eight centuries ago, during the Yuan dynasty, Beijing sent some officials to
conduct a survey at Huangyan Island (Scarborough Shoal). When the Chinese
government claimed all rock features in the South China Sea area in 1947, it
was met with virtually no counterclaim.
Moreover, until
1997, successive Philippine governments made it clear – through their
constitutions – that the nation’s westernmost territory ended at Luzon Island.
In fact, Scarborough Shoal, 130 nautical miles west of Luzon, was completely
out of the Philippines’ constitution-defined territory until 1997. It was
therefore never an area covered by its defense treaties with either Spain or
the United States.
It was only in
1997, when Manila introduced its current constitution, that the Philippines began
to claim all the islands within its EEZ. Yes, the 1982 UNCLOS gives the
Philippines certain economic rights within this exclusive zone, but it doesn’t
give it sovereignty over the Chinese islands and islets within that zone.
The Philippines
has recently taken military action to occupy at least eight such islands – a
serious infringement upon China’s sovereignty. In addition, in 1999, the
Philippine Navy intentionally grounded its tank-landing ship at Ren’ai Jiao
(Second Thomas Shoal), further encroaching on Chinese territory. Given such
aggression, it should be China suing the Philippines and not the other way
around. One is left wondering how a country that doesn’t respect the
sovereignty of its neighbors can demand that other nations respect its own economic
rights.
There are two
categories of dispute at stake – sovereignty and economic rights – and China
has strong claims on both. Until 1997, the Philippines accepted that it was not
entitled to sovereignty over the Spratly Islands, but China has not accepted
Manila’s EEZ without reservation. Manila cannot invade Chinese territory (and
territorial waters) in the South China Sea while demanding that China yield its
traditional economic rights to an international convention without reservation.
China has long
proposed that both sides put aside their differences and co-develop in a fair
manner. It has exercised significant self-restraint in dealing with the
Philippines’ aggression and encroachment. Given this serious dispute, it is
essential that both sides take meticulous care to communicate and ease the
tension. But Manila has recently shown no interest in shelving differences. It
has even employed gunships to arrest Chinese fishermen in the traditional
Chinese fishing area. Facing such challenges, China has to respond resolutely
to defend its legitimate rights.
Housing mess
April 16 (UB
Post) A total of 190,000 households are living in ger districts currently.
Providing ger district households with apartments is not only a matter of
housing but also a big challenge for Mongolia’s development. It also goes
without saying that housing will be instrumental in getting rid of air
pollution in Ulaanbaatar. Furthermore, it is hard to use the term “urban
households” when referring to households that have no running water.
During the last
two years, since the management of our capital city was transferred to a
different political party for the first time in history, we had an increased
number of housing projects progressing simultaneously. Senior management of the
capital city visited the United States, the Republic of South Africa,
Singapore, and Korea to learn their experience in public housing. However,
Ulaanbaatar residents are more interested in the outcome of housing projects
than how many projects there are and how they will be implemented. We, the
residents of Ulaanbaatar, need to have our own apartments as soon as possible
which offers basic living conditions.
Ger District Redevelopment Project
Fifteen months
ago, the Ulaanbaatar Citizens’ Representatives Council, commonly referred to as
the “City Council,” approved a project to redevelop seven ger district
locations into modern apartment areas. The Ger District Redevelopment (GDR)
project’s pipe construction alone costs 35 billion MNT. The project is expected
to be completed by 2019 and provide 92,500 households with apartments. A total
of 15 companies will implement this project and are expected to deliver 5,800
apartments this year and another 9,500 next year. The project is managed by
D.Battulga, Chairman of the Ulaanbaatar Citizens’ Representatives Council.
Government Housing Corporation Project
Eight months
ago, the government made a decision to provide a funding of 100 million USD to
establish a Government Housing Corporation (GHC) on the foundation of the
Housing Finance Corporation. The corporation is aimed at building affordable
housings for people opting for the eight percent interest mortgage program. The
mortgage is being provided to people who have a full-time job and have paid a
down payment of 30 percent. Furthermore, renting options are available for
public servants, young families, people with disabilities, and elders. Loans
that existed with the Housing Financing Corporations were fully transferred to
the State Bank. This project is directly managed by the Prime Minister.
Ulaanbaatar Housing Corporation Project
Several days
ago, a new project that targets people who are not able to make a down payment
was announced by the Mayor of Ulaanbaatar. This project will allow people to
put 25-30 percent of their salary in a housing accumulation fund every month to
receive an apartment three to five years later. Afterwards, they will be
eligible to gain ownership of the apartments by making the required monthly
payments. It is expected that the Ulaanbaatar Housing Corporation (UHC) will
receive 20,000 apartment orders in the first year and accumulate 50 billion
MNT, which will allow them to commence the work to build two housing districts.
They will build apartments in six locations that are owned by the city. This
project is expected to run much faster as there will be no need to relocate ger
districts from those locations. It looks like that the mayor will be in charge
of this project.
Using the same
approach, every province can establish an Aimag Housing Corporation (AHC). When
many projects are implemented simultaneously, there could be overlapping
management and organization. Such problems could lead to conflicting
management, fights over authority, and ineffective spending. It means that we
have to starting thinking about it now.
The policy on
public housing has to be simple, clear, and highly efficient. The main reason
for government involvement in housing is to provide mass housings at an
affordable price in a shorter amount of time. The government has started to
build studio apartments for elders and people in home care, rental apartments
for low-income families, and apartments for middle-income families and above.
It will also be efficient for the private sector, not the government, to build
houses with spacey backyards for those with higher incomes.
HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD
A project to
build 200,000 apartments in the capital city is not only a construction project
but also a matter of development. Therefore, we have to be wise in project
management and organization. Although Korean models are similar to ours in
terms of formatting, it seems that the Housing and Development Board of
Singapore is more suitable to our case. Integrating different managements of
the corporations mentioned above will better meet the needs of a country with a
small population like us.
Since the
Housing and Development Board of Mongolia (HDBM) will belong to and be governed
by the government only, its highest authority should be the Ministry of
Economic Development. Branch offices of the HDBM could be established in the
capital city as well as province centers and be managed by local governments.
It will be more efficient to have the Ministry of Economic Development provide
high-level management, methodology, research, and evaluations to local
governments, which will be working under integrated budget and funding.
The HDMB should
be a limited liability company and eventually become a shareholding company. In
terms of structure, the HDMB can have two main departments, one in charge of
construction and another managing lands and corporations. The construction
department should be responsible for planning and construction of
infrastructure and buildings, research and development, building quality, and
tenders. The other department could have a simple structure where they have two
divisions; one in charge of real estate management, housing management, public
involvement, and production, and the other managing the relations between
corporations, financial and information services, laws, and internal audit.
Apart from the two main departments, a third department needs to be established
for research and studies.
The 400,000
hectares of land owned by Ulaanbaatar is quite a huge capital itself,
therefore, it should have the same level of management, by the corporation that
is in charge of its funding. The corporation should be able to issue bonds and
raise capital to fund construction and purchase lands from people at market
rates, which is the fastest method for land acquisition. Also, another way of
raising capital would be by selling lands owned by the capital city for higher
prices.
In terms of
funding, the Housing and Development Council should establish a fund besides
the public budget and raise capital by issuing local bonds, setting up a
lottery in apartment sales, and land auctions. Singapore has a Central
Provident Fund that collects all compulsory taxes from both employers and
employees into retirement, healthcare, and housing (ordinary) accounts under
the name of employees. It is allowed to make housing payments from an ordinary
account.
Besides the
proposal from the mayor to collect 30 percent of salary for an accumulation
fund, every housing project needs a mechanism that will ensure a timely
completion of the project and guarantee that people will move into their
apartments in time. The Mayor’s reassurance that the government will not go
bankrupt is just not going to be good enough. South Korea solved this problem
by establishing a Construction Guarantee that is owned by the government (55
percent), commercial banks (18 percent), and construction companies (14
percent). This organization provides all remainder funds needed for a
successful project completion in case a construction company fails to complete
its project within the deadline.
In terms of
organization, international tenders should be announced only after finalizing
the policy and mechanism. Otherwise, we will repeat our experience where a
newly formed government denies the previous processes started by the former government
and freezes large projects, stopping their progress.
Furthermore, it
would be great if our mayor resolves the issue of heating and power sources by
immediately starting the construction of Power Plant No.5.
If the housing
projects in our capital city are successful, it will produce many positive
changes including the recovery of our economy, shrinking of ger districts, and
reduction of air pollution.
Translated by
B.AMAR
Movie Review: Amka and the Three Golden Rules
April 16 (UB
Post) This review contains spoilers
A
disproportionately small amount of spotlight is shed onto the human aspect of
Mongolia as opposed to its vast mineral riches. What really resonated with me
about the film, “Amka and the Three Golden Rules” was that it managed to
balance the importance of both through the brilliantly crafted story of a ten
year old orphan boy who must provide for his drunken older brother and little
sister by collecting cans and bottles in the streets.
“Amka and the
Three Golden Rules” is currently being featured in American film festivals and
has won two awards for best feature film so far. And it’s no surprise.
Directed by
Pakistan born British/American Babar Ahmed and starring Ganzorig Telmen as
Amka, the film delivers a compelling and uplifting story of a good-hearted boy
who must learn from his mistakes. The story is in many ways a symbol of how
Mongolia must decide its own faith.
When Amka,
who’s had a tragic past that left his family in poverty, finds a gold coin in
his backyard, he does what most ten year old boys do – buy the things he wants
most. The little money he made from the gold coin is quickly spent on sports
clothes and video games (more on this later), and soon Amka finds himself in
debt with the local boys.
Due to his
excessive spending habits developed as a result of the gold coin, Amka finds
himself in confrontation with his older brother and begins to neglect his
little sister.
Unable to live
in his neighbourhood without getting into trouble with those from whom he
borrowed, Amka decides to spend the rest of the summer with his uncle, who
leads a nomadic life in the countryside. There Amka must learn three lessons
that will set him on the right path.
Telmen delivers
a strong, natural performance as Amka, seamlessly guiding the audience through
the story.
Combined with a
strong lead, stunning shots of the spectacular landscapes of Mongolia and
excellent music, with an ethnic undertone, the movie adds another perspective
onto life in Mongolia.
As stated
above, the story itself serves as a symbol for Mongolia and how it must
efficiently utilizes its considerable natural resources, as Amka had to learn.
At the same time, the movie underlines important social concerns in Mongolia,
such as the hardships living in the ger districts, without central heating and
water supplies, and unregulated video game centers that allow minors to play
violent video games and view explicit content for prolonged hours.
The only things
that were a bit hard to swallow for me was the Mongolian dialogue, which
sometimes felt a bit forced and unnatural, but I think foreign audiences will
enjoy watching it with the English subtitles.
Overall, I
thoroughly enjoyed watching the movie and feel that it is a great addition to
movies set in Mongolia. I give this film 7.5/10, definitely worth watching.
Mongolian opera singers take second place at international opera competition
April 16 (UB
Post) Mongolian opera singers Ch.Badral and B.Mongolkhuu participated in an
international opera singers’ competition named after Russian People’s Artist
Nadezhda Obukhova.
Some 217 opera
singers from various countries such as Russia, the USA, France, Cuba, Ukraine,
South Korea, China and the UK took part in contest.
At the second
stage of the competition, 34 opera singers competed and 14 were selected for
the final stage. Out of those 14, Mongolian opera singer Ch.Badral took second
place and B.Mongolkhuu received a special place.
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