Category Archives: Governance

Not the end of Democracy?

By Julian Dierkes On March 27 2019, the Mongolian parliament passed legislation giving the National Security Council greater authority over judicial appointments and dismissals. This very sudden decision has caused a great deal concern among international observers of Mongolia and … Continue reading

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The Beginning of the End of Democracy?

By Julian Dierkes and Boldsaikhan Sambuu Mongolians have voiced strong reactions to the proposal and the passage of a series of amendments to the laws governing the appointment and dismissal of judges, the Prosecutor General, and the Head of the … Continue reading

Posted in Boldsaikhan Sambuu, Corruption, Governance, JD Democratization, Judiciary, Law, Public Service | Leave a comment

Party Implications of SME Fund Scandal

By Julian Dierkes Since late summer, I have been speculating about different scenarios to bring about a change in political culture and in the party landscape. These speculations focused on trigger evens that might lead to protests which would lead … Continue reading

Posted in Civil Will Green Party, Constitution, Corruption, Democracy, Governance, Ikh Khural 2020, Law, National Labor Party, Party Politics, Policy, Politics, Populism, Protest, Social Movements | Tagged | Leave a comment

MNB World Interview

In August, Julian Dierkes was interviewed on MNB World by Belgutei Tumendemberel.

Posted in Air Pollution, Civil Society, Corruption, Democracy, Elections, Governance, Party Politics, Politics, Younger Mongolians | Leave a comment

Pervasive Sense of (Political) Crisis

By Julian Dierkes During my most recent visit to Mongolia, I heard talk of political crisis everywhere. [A strong argument for visiting more often!] Not the kind of crisis that could be resolved by a change of government, although rumours … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Governance, Ikh Khural 2020, JD Democratization, Nationalism, Party Politics, Politics, Public Opinion, Social Media, Social Movements, Society and Culture | Tagged | Leave a comment

Local Level Agreements in Mongolia: A Need for Government Leadership and Policy Clarity

By Byambajav D Before any mineral exploration and mining can take place in Mongolia, the country’s 2006 Minerals Law requires that the host local government and license holders sign a “local level agreement” (LLA). LLAs typically include commitments and obligations … Continue reading

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IAAC: To Change Directors or Strengthen the Institutions?

By Mendee Jargalsaikhan and Julian Dierkes In a previous post, we discussed the joint efforts of President Kh Battulga, MP L Oyun-Erdene (MPP), and concerned citizen O Darkhanbaatar, regarding the current leadership of the IAAC.  The most publicized reason for … Continue reading

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Joint Calls for Special Sessions to Removal of IAAC Leadership

by Mendee Jargalsaikhan & Julian Dierkes In May, we wrote a primer on the Independent Authority against Corruption. The АТГ has been back in the news recently, partly because of on-going investigations against former politicians, but also because of battles between … Continue reading

Posted in Corruption, Governance, Ikh Khural 2016, Judiciary, Politics, Public Service, Security Apparatus | Tagged | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Five Reasons Why Democracy in Mongolia is Working

By Daniel Schmücking and Adiyasuren J Mongolia is hailed as an ‘oasis of democracy’, as a shining example of democratic development, and as a model for other post-communist countries especially the Central Asian nations to strive to. Although, many challenges such … Continue reading

Posted in Adiya Jamiyandagva, Civil Society, Constitution, Daniel Schmücking, Democracy, Development, Foreign Policy, Global Indices, Governance, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Media and Press | Leave a comment

Norwegian Wealth

By Julian Dierkes One of my all-time favourite authors is 村上春樹. He rose to fame initially with his book, Norwegian Wood (ノルウェイの森). That was a reference to a Beatles song, of course. And thus the title of this post, combining literature, … Continue reading

Posted in Corruption, Democracy, Development, EITI, Governance, Mining, Mining Governance, Policy, Politics, Public Policy, Public Service, Sovereign Wealth Fund | Tagged | 1 Comment

Battulga, What Kind of President?

By Julian Dierkes Kh Battulga has been elected president. That means the dominance of the president’s office by the DP will continue another four years past Ts Elbegdorj’s two terms. But what kind of president will Battulga be? While the … Continue reading

Posted in Constitution, Corruption, Democracy, Governance, JD Democratization, Party Politics, Politics, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | 1 Comment

Reflection on Second Round [Video]

By Julian Dierkes With the second round of the presidential election on July 7, the “election season” has come to an end and I summarize its result in this brief video. Obviously, our attention now turns to what the future … Continue reading

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The Mechanics of a Blank Ballot

By Julian Dierkes First, the presidential election campaign was sleepy. Then it turned sleezy. Now, things got exciting because some Mongolians seem to have found a strategy to fight back against two-party dominance and the “offer” of a choice of … Continue reading

Posted in Governance, JD Democratization, Presidential 2017, Social Movements | Tagged | 1 Comment

The Likelihood of Constitutional Reform

By Julian Dierkes The likelihood of constitutional reform in Mongolia is primarily determined by party politics at the moment. Discussions of the constitution have been active in recent years. I have written about the extent to which the campaign platforms … Continue reading

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Presidential Competencies and Election Platforms

By Julian Dierkes One of the prominent topics in political discussions of the past 2-3 years has been constitutional reform. This has been brought about by the indeterminate compromise between a parliamentary and presidential democracy that the framers of the … Continue reading

Posted in Constitution, Democratic Party, Elections, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Party Politics, Politics, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | Leave a comment