Mongolia Brief June 27, 2014 Part I
“Cherished Mongolian Horse” Exhibition Opened to Promote Culture and Tradition
June 27
(infomongolia.com) In the scope of the 90th anniversary of establishing
contemporary museum in Mongolia and the 93rd anniversary of celebration of the
People’s revolution, Mongolian Military Museum in collaboration with the Museum
of Dundgovi Aimag have opened a “Cherished Mongolian Horse” exhibition in
Ulaanbaatar.
The exhibition
held opening on June 18 and to run until July 04, features ancient Mongolian
full set of military garments including helmet, saddles crafted by Khalkh
Mongolians and other ethnic groups as well as used ones in 1930s by militants,
and other horse accessories such as silver bridles, bridle-bit, currycomb, and
old times stamps to mark horses.
Also, over 100
exhibits including sculptures, pictures, Morin Khuur, skin bag for holding
Airag and other pieces related to culture of breeding Mongol horse are
displayed at the Mongolian Military Museum, which is located near Monument to
Georgy Zhukov.
Mongolia and Japan Held First Strategy Consultation Meeting in Tokyo
June 27
(infomongolia.com) The Foreign Ministries of Mongolia and Japan held the first
ever strategy consultation meeting in Tokyo on June 26, 2014. The Mongolian
part was chaired by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs D.Gankhuyag and the
other side by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Shinsuke Sugiyama.
During the
meeting parties reviewed the present state of Mongolia-Japan strategic
partnership relations and exchanged views on the further goals. The Japanese
side emphasized that a statement delivered by the President of Mongolia
Ts.Elbegdorj at the Parliament of Japan during his visit in 2010 had given a
noticeable impetus to the stimulation of bilateral ties and thereafter the two
sides agreed to develop strategic partnership relations.
Deputy Minister
D.Gankhuyag highlighted the expansion of bilateral strategic partnership
relations in all spheres including politics, security, economy, culture,
education and people exchange as well as at regional and international levels.
Moreover, the
sides agreed on effective implementation of mid-term program on strategic
partnership and intensification of bilateral collaboration in the economic
area. In this term, the Government of Mongolia is working on hosting a
Mongolia-Japan Business Forum in cooperation with the Japan Business Federation
and the Japan External Trade Organization in Tokyo in July 2014.
At the first
strategy consultation meeting, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
Mongolia to Japan S.Khurelbaatar, Director of Department of Asia and the
Pacific at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia, Ch.Bayarmunkh and
Director of First China and Mongolia Division at the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of Japan, Atsushi Ueno were present.
Related:
Mongolia
and Japan Foreign Ministries Hold Consultation Meeting – Montsame, June 27
Toyota Corporation Pledges to Award Winner of State Naadam Traditional Wrestling Competition with Toyota Car
June 27
(infomongolia.com) It is about two weeks left to celebrate the nation’s biggest
holiday nationwide, the State Naadam Festival 2014 commemorating the 93rd
anniversary of the People’s Revolution.
Due to
approaching festival, the State Naadam Festival Organizing Committee is
completing the preparation works and officials said this year will be the last
to organize an opening and closing ceremonies at the Central Stadium in
Ulaanbaatar, because the Capital City Administration budgeted to construct new
venue for these events at the Khui Doloon Khudag valley in Tuv Aimag, which is
about 35 km from UB and all Three Games of Men (Eriin Gurvan Naadam) will be
organized at one place.
In addition,
newly operational Railbus will also serve to Khui Doloon Khudag at cost of
3,500 MNT from UB.
Moreover, the
Organizing Committee Chairman Yo.Gerelchuluun added, “This year as customary,
512 wrestlers will compete in the traditional wrestling tournament in 9 rounds
by eliminating system and Japanese Toyota Corporation sent a request to
collaborate by awarding a winner of the tournament with a Toyota car. However,
it is not announced yet which type of vehicle will be presented, but the
ceremony of handing will be held on July 13, 2014 during one of the festivals
of Uyachdyn Naadam (Horse Trainers Festival) at Khui Doloon Khudag or Deeltei
Mongol Festival (Mongolians in Deel) at Chinggis Square. This date was selected
because winners of the wrestling are awarded with state prizes on July 12”.
Related:
Ulaanbaatar Hosts Energy Chapter Forum
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) Ulaanbaatar Energy Chapter Forum discussed Thursday issues
regarding developing a renewable energy across Gobitec and Asian Super Grid in
Northeast Asia.
Opening the
event, co-organized by Energy Charter Secretariat and Mongolia’s Energy
Ministry, the President of Mongolia Ts.Elbegdorj, Energy Minister M.Sonompil,
and Energy Charter Secretary-General Urban Rusnak addressed the gathered
including representatives of China, Russia, Japan and South Korea.
Amid the forum,
panels were held under themes such as ‘Why and how to attract large scale
investments in wind and solar projects in the Gobi desert?’, ‘Cross-border
regional cooperation to develop Asian Super Grid’, ‘Role of international
organizations in supporting Gobitec and Asian Super Grid initiatives’, at which
participant discussed the Gobitec initiative targeted at boosting production of
clean energy from renewable, the Asian Super Grid initiative aimed at
connecting the countries in Northeast Asia and the international renewable
energy community.
Closing remarks
were made by Mr Tomas Kåberger, Executive Board Chair, Japan Renewable Energy
Foundation and Mr Davaadorj, Secretary of State, Ministry of Energy of
Mongolia. The event was ended with a gala dinner hosted by Energy Minister
M.Sonompil.
The Gobitec
project investigates the possibility of energy cooperation in Northeast Asia
based on concentrated solar power plants in the desert areas of the Gobi
desert, in Mongolia and, even more favorably, in China, as the desert,
shared by Mongolia and China, is estimated to be the third largest potential
source of solar energy in the world and also blessed with steady, strong
wind speeds making it ideal for both technologies.
Parliament to Discuss Amendments to Telecommunication Law
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) A parliamentary session on Thursday evening approved a later
discussion of amendments to the Telecommunication law.
The draft will
be submitted to the Standing committee on economy to be prepared for the first
discussion in parliament later.
After that, MPs
were scheduled to discuss an issue regarding setting of ownership share of the
Government in Tsagaan Suvarga copper deposit. However, a faction of the
"Justice" coalition asked the Speaker to postpone the discussion,
advising a review on the matter within the group. The same group had previously
taken a five-day break to reschedule the discussion.
Accepting the
request, the Speaker withdrew the issue from the meeting agenda.
Mongolia Emergency Chief at International Forum
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) Chief of the Emergency Management Agency T.Dulamdorj is
attending the sixth Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction
these days.
The Conference
is taking place in Bangkok, Thailand to provide a unique opportunity for Asian
Disaster Risk Reduction organizations and practitioners to shape the Hyogo
Framework for Action 2.
A strong
turn-out of government ministers and top disaster management officials ensures
high-level political engagement in key discussions at the 6th Asian Ministerial
Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction in Thailand which will end June 28.
More than 2,500
representatives from 42 countries are taking part in the three-day
conference to agree the region’s priorities for the post-2015 global framework
for disaster risk reduction.
The Conference
features four High-Level Round Tables comprising Ministers in charge of
disaster risk management and the Heads of Delegation from each country present.
At one of these forums Ministerial Statements reflects on implementation of the
current global framework for disaster risk reduction, the Hyogo Framework for
Action, and highlight priorities for consideration at the Third UN World
Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan, in March 2015.
The other three
High-Level Round Tables focuses on enhancing resilience at local levels;
resilient public investments; and public-private partnerships for disaster risk
reduction. A series of technical sessions around the same themes are running at
the Conference in support of the political dialogue.
Minister S.Oyun at High-Level Segment of UNEA
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 /MONTSAME/ Mongolia’s Minister of Environment and Green Development and
the president of the United Nations Environment Assembly Ms S.Oyun took part in
a high-level segment on Thursday at the first UNEA running in the UNEP
Headquarters, Nairobi, Kenya.
Alongside her,
the meeting was attended by Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, the President of the Republic of
Kenya; His Highness His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco; Mr Achim
Steiner, the UNEP Executive Director; Mr John W. Ashe, President of the General
Assembly; Ms Sahle-Work Zewde, the Director-General of the United Nations
Office at Nairobi (UNON); Mr Joan Clos i Matheu, the Executive Director of the
United Nations Human Settlements Programme, (UN-HABITAT); Ambassadors and
Permanent Representatives of countries to the UNEP. They discussed the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Post-2015 Development Agenda,
including Sustainable Consumption and Production, and the Illegal Trade in
Wildlife.
Ms Oyun
delivered the opening remarks of the high-level segment, saying that the UNEA
will determine a future of the UNEP as well as environmental goals of counties
and will contribute to forming a condition to ensure a sustainable development.
Then she introduced to the participants a governmental policy of Mongolia on
environment and green development, and some measures.
"UNEA is a
historic event for all of us. The world today faces an increasing number of
challenges which require a firm resolve," Ms Oyun said.
The UNEA is the
highest-level UN body ever convened on the environment. It enjoys universal
membership of all 193 UN member states as well as other stakeholder groups.
With this wide reach into the legislative, financial and development arenas,
the new body presents a ground-breaking platform for leadership on global
environmental policy. UNEA boasts over 1200 participants, 170 national delegations,
112 delegations headed at minister level and 40 events during the five-day
event from 23 to 27 June 2014 at UNEP's Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.
Banks Grant Mortgages of 1.16 Million Togrog
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) Commercial banks of Mongolia have so far received
re-financing requests for low interest mortgage loans totaling 850.6 billion
togrog.
Since
commencing the annual 8% mortgage program last June, the banks have received
requests to refund already awarded housing loans of 850.6 billion togrog, which
have been delivered under the Government program to stabilize the mortgage
system of the nation. Refunding requests for the loans totaling 534.2 billion
from 18 thousand 472 people have been approved by the commercial banks.
During the same
period, the commercial banks have received low interest mortgage loan
applications totaling 1.1 trillion togrog. After a careful consideration over
the new requests, the banks decided to grant mortgage of one trillion 49.8
billion togrog to 20 thousand 734 applicants.
Central Bank Informs Preliminary Balance of Payment
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) The current account deficit stands at US$ 580.5 million
which is decrease of 56 percent or US$ 728.2 million from the previous year,
says the Central Bank of Mongolia.
This includes
98% decrease of international trade in goods’ deficit for the first five months
of 2014, thus showing surplus of US$ 8.4 million. Meantime, the international
trade in services’ deficit decreased by 12% to US$ 561.3 million, the deficit
on income account dropped by 57% to US$ 101.9 million, and the surplus on
current transfer increased by 42% to US$ 91.1 million.
Capital and
financial accounts showed a deficit of US$ 2.6 million, decreasing100% or US$
969.6 million from 2013. This is due to a 64% decline of foreign direct
investment to Mongolia which equals to US$ 708.0 million. There was increase of
US$ 611.3 million in other investment deficit.
Such increase
in other investment were caused by a US$ 176.8 million increase of trade credit
receivables, an increase of US$ 407.1 million in FX flow to domestic market, a
decrease of US$ 108.4 million of currency and deposits, and US$ 111.3 million
decline in disbursement of loans.
Health Ministries Discuss ‘Guest Professor’ Program
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) A so-called ‘Guest Professor’ program was discussed Thursday
at the third Mongolia-Korea intergovernmental consultative meeting in
Ulaanbaatar.
Under the
leadership of the Health Deputy Ministers of the two countries -J.Amarsanaa and
Choi Young-hyun, the gathered discussed the program that was launched in 2014,
as part of the Seoul project. Since then, eight professors of South Korea have
worked in Mongolian hospitals to train staffers there.
Within the
Seoul project which kicked off two years ago, a total of 24 Mongolian doctors
from five hospitals have been involved medical trainings in South Korea, noted
Mr Amarsanaa.
Mr Choi
expressed a confidence in great contribution of the meeting to the health care
cooperation between Mongolia and South Korea.
At the meeting,
the parties also discussed measures to take place within above-mentioned
program.
Zuunmod Town to Host Asian School Cross Country Championship
Ulaanbaatar,
June 27 (MONTSAME) The Mongolian Track and Field Association, together with
Junior Sports Union are to organize Asian school cross country championship in
Zuunmod town of Tov province this Saturday.
Young athletes
from Mongolia, Russia, China, Macau, Hong Kong and Malaysia will compete in two
age groups. Girls and boys of 14-15 will run a distance of 3.5km, while 16-17
aged will traverse a longer 4.6km distance.
As the host
nation, Mongolia will be represented by five athletes in each event, while
other countries will put four runners for each distance.
Public outrage changes course
June 27 (UB
Post) Shortly after the public fury that forced law makers to retract the newly
proposed Land Law had just begun to fade, the talk by law makers of building
Chinese-standard narrow gauge railroad from Tavan Tolgoi coal mine to the
Chinese border has rebounded in public protest.
Social media
and the press are in a frenzy, with anger clogging up Facebook groups and
Twitter feeds such as the nationalist Dayar Mongol (DM) Facebook group.
“I hope the
[Chinese standard] gauge bill is dropped today in Parliament. We see the
members who are pressing their buttons while the public is clearly against it.
Although they say that the masses are brainwashed, I want to say that we are
different,” said one DM post with dozens of comments and likes.
Currently, all
of Mongolia’s railway infrastructure is built with Soviet standard, broad gauge
railways. The narrow gauge proposed by Parliamentarians is the international
standard and used in China, which makes it convenient for transporting coal to
China from Tavan Tolgoi mine.
While it was
noted by experts that building a narrow gauge railway would save money and make
coal shipments simpler than a broad gauge railway, other experts pointed out
that the narrow gauge cannot be connected to Sainshand soum, where trillions of
MNT worth of industrial projects are expected to unfold, as it uses broad gauge
rails.
The amount of
anger and frustration expressed by the public on social media has been
attributed largely to nationalist political views and Sinophobia, anti-Chinese
sentiment. It is also worth noting that the public has just experienced a huge
wave of uproar at the Land Law, and that the wave has not yet subsided, which
makes it seem as though the reaction towards the narrow gauge bill is
disproportionate.
The Land Law,
which was retracted by the Prime Minister last week, allegedly contained
clauses that would make it possible for foreign citizens to purchase and own
land, which was met with widespread anger from the public at large.
Individuals,
organizations, media, outspoken nationalists and patriots rallied people on
social media to stand against the law and urged their representatives to
retract it from Parliament.
Some
politicians reported that they received appeals and threats from voters through
their social media outlets and by phone, demanding retraction of the bill.
Various media,
including Mongol TV, reported that if passed, the law would allow foreign
citizens and organizations who have been in Mongolia for over six months to own
land for 60-100 years, which triggered mass concern over national security and
deep-rooted Sinophobia among Mongolians.
Mongolia’s
history and culture teaches reverence and the cherishing of one’s land, and
with a relatively small population of three million, Mongolians believe that
foreign ownership of land is a serious national security issue.
Before
retracting the law due to overwhelming negative reactions from the public, in
defense of the law it proposed, the Democratic Party faction in Parliament said
that wrongful representation was made to the public about the law, and that no
clauses allowing foreign ownership were included. They claimed that legal terms
such as land use, acquisition and ownership were misused to give a misleading
representation of the law.
It is safe to
say that the retraction of the bill was caused by public uproar. The public has
demonstrated its power, but it also needs to consider that building a railway
to China is of critical importance. It will help boost production and
exportation in Mongolia, which in turn will help out the economy. The public
must not abandon reason because of preconceived notions, and consider the facts
before condemning decisions that could be vital to Mongolia’s future.
Related:
Day of Advocates takes place
June 27
(news.mn) On the occasion of the Day of Mongolian Advocates, the Ministry of
Justice is holding a “Day of Advocates-open day” event along with the National
Legal Institute today on June 27, 2014 at the Square of Advocates near the
National Legal Institute.
The event is
organized with the aim to provide public with information on the justice sector
reform and promote measures implemented in the framework of legislation, receiving
civil opinions and complaints with participation of affiliated agencies from
the Ministry of Justice.
During the
event the Ministry of Justice will name the best advocates of the year during
the opening ceremony of the “Legalinfo” program for phone launched by the
National Legal Institute.
For the event,
the General Authority for Border Protection, General Police Agency, the Court
Decision Enforcement Office, the General Authority for State Registration, the
General Archive Authority, the Citizenship and Migration General Authority, the
General Takhar Department, National Legal Institute, Association of Mongolian
Advocates, and the Legal Aid Center affiliated with the Ministry of Justice
will give information about their activities to the public and receive public
opinions and complaints.
Mongolia certified as measles-free country by WHO
June 27
(news.mn) Mongolia becomes the country of measles-free as it has been certified
by WHO on June 26th. In Mongolia immunization the population with vaccine
against measles (Ulaanburkhan in Mongolian) was practiced since 1973. As result
of efforts focused on the cases of measles, Mongolia recognized as measles-free
country by the World Health Organization. The World Health Organization
presented a certificate to Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag by Dr Mark Jacobs,
Director of the Division of Combating Communicable Diseases in the WHO Western
Pacific Region that verifying the country could prevent from measles spread
during a ceremony in Ulaanbaatar on June 26th.
According to a
WHO report, Mongolia has experienced no lab-confirmed or epidemiologically
linked cases since 2010, when last seven clinically confirmed cases of measles
occurred.
During the
ceremony presenting the certificate, Dr Dr Mark Jacobs said that Mongolia
becomes one of the first countries in the western pacific region to be
certificated as measles-free along with three other countries such as
Australia, South Korea and Macao among 37 countries and added that preventing
communicative disease spread is not depend on a country`s development level but
it depends on result of immunization efforts and specific system.
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