Civic space in Mongolia is rated as ‘narrowed’ by the CIVICUS Monitor. Ongoing concerns raised by civil society include reports of harassment, intimidation and reprisals against human rights defenders, especially those working to defend economic, social and cultural rights. Further, provisions of the Criminal Code related to ‘cooperation with foreign intelligence agencies’ and ‘sabotage’ have been used to prosecute human rights defenders for legitimate activities. There are also concerns about press freedom and the criminalisation of journalists.
In September 2024, Mongolia welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin despite the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2023 for the alleged illegal deportation of Ukrainian children. Human rights groups said these actions defied its international obligations as an ICC member and “would also undermine the crucial principle that no one, no matter how powerful, is above the law.”
On 12th and 13th November 2024, the UN Committee Against Torture (CAT) reviewed the 3rd periodic report of Mongolia. The Committee also inquired about Mongolia’s extradition agreements, asking how the risk of torture is assessed in such cases and the legal right to appeal deportation or extradition orders. The Committee also expressed concern over harassment of human rights defenders (HRDs), particularly those opposing mining projects. It urged Mongolia to strengthen legal protections for HRDs and ensure freedoms of expression and association.
In recent months, prominent journalist Unurtsetseg Naran was convicted on baseless charges and sentenced to jail, while there continues to be a lack of protection for whistle-blowers. Protests against President Putin’s visit to Mongolia were disrupted with arrests, while there are concerns about proposed protest law.
Expression
Prominent journalist jailed for nearly five years and appeal denied in closed-door hearings
On 19th July 2024, a Mongolian court sentenced a prominent journalist to nearly five years in prison. In a closed-door trial, the court convicted Unurtsetseg Naran of five charges: “tax evasion”, “disclosure of personal information”, “illegal acquisition of state secrets”, “money laundering”, and “spreading false information”. Unurtsetseg, who denies wrongdoing, was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison.
Unurtsetseg, who is the editor-in-chief of the news site Zarig, was first arrested in December 2023 and investigated for “spreading false information” following her social media posts criticising the Mongolian judicial system. More serious charges were later added. She was arrested in December 2023, detained for over two months, and then placed under house arrest before being sent to jail.
The proceedings were widely criticised by civil society groups in Mongolia. Press freedom NGOs declared that the decision goes against the principle of an open, transparent court, and could potentially result in “unpredictability of the media industry’s process, intimidation, and foster self-censorship among journalists.”
Unurtsetseg is well-known in Mongolia for her critical coverage, exposing the corruption and money laundering of high-ranking Mongolian officials. In one of her best-known investigations, the journalist questioned companies that had defaulted on loans to the Development Bank of Mongolia. She also uncovered sexual abuse in a Buddhist boarding school and exposed violence in the military.
On 7th November 2024, a Mongolian appeals court upheld the verdict, again behind closed doors. Lawyers representing Unurtsetseg said that because the hearings were closed, defence attorneys had restricted access to case files and evidence, which severely limited their ability to defend their client effectively.
Mongolia’s press freedom ranking dropped 21 places to 109 out of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) index, down from 88 in 2023.
Lack of protection for whistle-blowers
A new report by Transparency International Mongolia published in August 2024 stated that despite advances in passing legislation on the prevention of corruption, the lack of a whistle-blower protection law still pending in Parliament exacerbates existing threats to civic space, preventing CSOs from effectively holding their government to account.
Further, the Law on Human Rights Defenders has no proven track record of implementation, and there has been backsliding in the openness, comprehensiveness, and user-friendliness of budget documents, as well as attempts to suppress public concerns raised over the lack of public engagement in government decision-making and legislative drafting processes.
Peaceful Assembly
Protests against Putin’s visit disrupted
Byebye democracy.
— Jan Wouters Esq. 🇧🇪 🇺🇦 @BelgianBoy@mastodon.social (@layoutdokter) September 3, 2024
Mongolian police stopped protesters from displaying the Ukrainian flag during Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s visit to the capital, Ulaanbaatar. pic.twitter.com/jUJil5RbGy
In September 2024, police disrupted protests against the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to the country. Mongolian police prevented protesters from displaying the Ukrainian flag in the capital, Ulaanbaatar.
Mongolian police also detained a small group of protesters before the ceremony at the Genghis Khan statue. Five other activists, who had gathered several blocks away from the Genghis Khan statue and were holding an anti-Putin banner and Ukrainian flag, dispersed upon hearing about the arrests.
Despite ratifying the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Ulaanbaatar has refused to execute its arrest warrant for Putin related to the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine.
Anti-war activists in Mongolia have been criminalised for their activism in recent years. In November 2022, five activists were sentenced to 12 months’ confinement to their districts of residence for resisting a law enforcement officer during a peaceful demonstration in October 2021. In June 2024, activists protesting the visit of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to Mongolia were detained by the police.
Concerns about proposed protest law
According to the International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL), Mongolia’s parliament recently expressed interest in adopting a Draft Law on the Freedom to Hold Peaceful Demonstrations and Gatherings.
ICNL received an informal translation of an October 2024 revised version of the draft bill from local partners. While the draft law contains several positive provisions, there were several concerns that some provisions were inconsistent with international human rights law and standards.
According to ICNL, the draft law provides an overbroad definition of a “non-peaceful” assembly, which can restrict legitimate assemblies and only allows citizens of Mongolia to organise assemblies, which excludes non-citizens from fully exercising their assembly rights without a legitimate basis. Organisers must register assemblies planned to take place on roads, which could give authorities discretion to prevent assemblies from occurring in places with the most impact.
The draft law also prohibits assemblies that, among other things, harms national security and public order by inciting disorder. Without further guidance on the actions that amount to “inciting disorder,” these restrictions grant authorities broad discretion to determine that an assembly has violated the draft law. The draft law also bans gatherings in certain places, gives authorities the power to ban assemblies by law during a state of emergency and bans assemblies that begin at night, which can undermine the significance of or participants’ ability to attend some assemblies.