Hamden Commissioner Helps Democracy in Mongolia
Ann Altman, a former member of the Legislative Council and current Planning and Zoning Commissioner, strives to improve the young democracy in Mongolia by sharing her expertise of Hamden's government.
In Mongolia, translated copies of the Hamden town charter have made their way to top government officials.
The 30-page document, which sets the rules for all aspects of local government, has a lot more relevance abroad than one might think.
The charter got to Mongolia via Ann Altman, a Planning and Zoning commissioner and former member of the Legislative Council representing the fifth district. Altman has taken up the cause to help the fledgling democracy, and her experience in local government has proven quite helpful.
“Hamden is a microcosm of democracy where all democratic processes occur smoothly and where the results of such processes are accepted by the citizens,” she said. “Because of its size, 60,000 people approximately, it is a good model for an administrative district of reasonable size.”
The economy in the country has experienced tremendous growth from when Altman first visited as part of a scientific expedition. In 2007, a driver of a jalopy was paid 80 cents to take people from the airport. Now the roadways are clogged with luxury SUVs and other western imports. Altman said it’s quicker to walk from the airport.
While Ulaanbaatar, the capital, has seen rapid development, most of the country lives in poverty. Mongolia is adjacent to China and Russia.
Prior to her first departure, Altman, a former Yale researcher, met Oyungerel Tsedevdambaat at the university. Tsedevdambaat was the chief aide for the prime minister, who is now president of the country.
She was very interested in the democratic process of a town like Hamden, and so was the prime minister. Altman introduced her to all of Hamden’s department heads and showed her what a Planning and Zoning Commission meeting was like. Then, Tsedevdambaat made a request.
“As a result, she asked me to extend my trip to Mongolia in 2007 and to lecture to Mongolian Democrats, who came from all over Mongolia to hear a series of lectures that I gave,” Altman said. “The prime minister scheduled a long evening with me after word reached him about what I had been lecturing on.”
Altman prides herself on bringing an unbiased and unaffiliated opinion to Mongolian officials, all while being brutally honest and paying her own way. She hopes to reinforce that there’s no need to reinvent the wheel because, “all the mechanisms, organizations and procedures for running a thriving democracy already exist and they can take advantage of them.”
In just a few years, Altman said, Mongolians have adopted the concept of public hearings based on what’s done in Hamden. Still, she said, much work remains.
“Even the equivalent of our Democratic Party is run, at present, like an old-style arty under Communism," she said. "For example, if you don't support the Party platform, you can be expelled from the Party.”
In Mongolia, translated copies of the Hamden town charter have made their way to top government officials.
The 30-page document, which sets the rules for all aspects of local government, has a lot more relevance abroad than one might think.
The charter got to Mongolia via Ann Altman, a Planning and Zoning commissioner and former member of the Legislative Council representing the fifth district. Altman has taken up the cause to help the fledgling democracy, and her experience in local government has proven quite helpful.
“Hamden is a microcosm of democracy where all democratic processes occur smoothly and where the results of such processes are accepted by the citizens,” she said. “Because of its size, 60,000 people approximately, it is a good model for an administrative district of reasonable size.”
The economy in the country has experienced tremendous growth from when Altman first visited as part of a scientific expedition. In 2007, a driver of a jalopy was paid 80 cents to take people from the airport. Now the roadways are clogged with luxury SUVs and other western imports. Altman said it’s quicker to walk from the airport.
While Ulaanbaatar, the capital, has seen rapid development, most of the country lives in poverty. Mongolia is adjacent to China and Russia.
Prior to her first departure, Altman, a former Yale researcher, met Oyungerel Tsedevdambaat at the university. Tsedevdambaat was the chief aide for the prime minister, who is now president of the country.
She was very interested in the democratic process of a town like Hamden, and so was the prime minister. Altman introduced her to all of Hamden’s department heads and showed her what a Planning and Zoning Commission meeting was like. Then, Tsedevdambaat made a request.
“As a result, she asked me to extend my trip to Mongolia in 2007 and to lecture to Mongolian Democrats, who came from all over Mongolia to hear a series of lectures that I gave,” Altman said. “The prime minister scheduled a long evening with me after word reached him about what I had been lecturing on.”
Altman prides herself on bringing an unbiased and unaffiliated opinion to Mongolian officials, all while being brutally honest and paying her own way. She hopes to reinforce that there’s no need to reinvent the wheel because, “all the mechanisms, organizations and procedures for running a thriving democracy already exist and they can take advantage of them.”
In just a few years, Altman said, Mongolians have adopted the concept of public hearings based on what’s done in Hamden. Still, she said, much work remains.
“Even the equivalent of our Democratic Party is run, at present, like an old-style arty under Communism," she said. "For example, if you don't support the Party platform, you can be expelled from the Party.”
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