Yearly Archives: 2017

Prime Minister-in-spe Khurelsukh

Posted on September 26, 2017 by JDierkes

U Khurelsukh will be elected prime minister. His term will be focused on domestic politics. Within the constraints of the IMF agreement, Khurelsukh will try to dampen perceptions of cutbacks in state benefits, while hoping for a continuation (or resumption, given the past month) of the rise of copper prices to bring revenues to the government that might increase his ability to shape policy more actively.
Who is Khurelsukh? Continue reading →

Norwegian Wealth

Posted on September 22, 2017 by JDierkes

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 Julian Dierkes | 1 Comment

New PM and Cabinet, New Start with the IMF?

Posted on September 17, 2017 by Marissa Smith

By Marissa J. Smith On September 6, Parliament opened its new session. On September 7, Prime Minister J. Erdenebat and Cabinet were voted out by Parliament after the motion was announced on August 23rd by thirty members of Erdenbat’s party, … Continue reading →

Posted in Corruption, Government, Mongolian People's Party, Party Politics, Politics | Tagged Marissa Smith | 1 Comment

How We Covered the Presidential Election

Posted on September 15, 2017 by JDierkes

By Julian Dierkes It’s been an exhausting but exhilarating summer, Mongolia’s election season. I tried – together with a number of students – to provide observations, interpretations and analyses of the campaigns and both rounds of voting. I reported on … Continue reading →

Posted in Presidential 2017 | Tagged Julian Dierkes | 2 Comments

Mongolian Presence in Germany

Posted on August 24, 2017 by JDierkes

By Julian Dierkes I spent the past year on a research leave from the University of British Columbia in Berlin, Germany, at the Free University’s Graduate School of East Asian Studies. I found Mongolia to be much more visible in … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, Cinema, Curios, Diaspora, Germany, Mongolian Diaspora, Pop Culture | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Beyond the Ballot – Mongolia’s General Election Commission

Posted on August 16, 2017 by JDierkes

By Jessica Keegan Mongolia’s General Election Commission (GEC) has been in existence since 1992 and is responsible for administering free, fair and credible elections. As with any young democracy, the institution has at times struggled to keep up with Mongolia’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Elections, Jessica Keegan, Presidential 2017, Public Opinion, Public Service | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Missing at the Kazakh Expo Party

Posted on August 4, 2017 by JDierkes

By Dénes Jäger The Vatican, Yemen, Antigua and Barbuda are only three of over 100 states participating in this year‘s Expo in Astana Kazakhstan. Even though the concept of an international exposition seems to be a little outdated in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Dénes Jäger, Foreign Policy, Kazakhstan | Leave a comment

Beyond “Populism without Party Platforms”: Mongolians’ Politics Beyond Ulaanbaatar

Posted on July 31, 2017 by Marissa Smith

By Marissa Smith The campaign and election of the rough-voiced businessman-judoka Kh. Battulga to the presidency of Mongolia has elicited comparisons to Donald Trump and gestures to a global wave of “populism” from analysts and commentators, journalistic as well as … Continue reading →

Posted in Countryside, Democratic Party, Demography, Elections, Erdenet, Kazakhs, Marissa Smith, Mongolian Diaspora, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Populism, Presidential 2017 | Tagged Marissa Smith | Leave a comment

Battulga, What Kind of President?

Posted on July 27, 2017 by JDierkes

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 Julian Dierkes | 1 Comment

Guest Post: Not Hans and George but Battulga?

Posted on July 25, 2017 by JDierkes

By Dénes Jäger In Turkish media the result of the Mongolian presidential elections didn’t really attract much attention. Most outlets only published a footnote, while some, interestingly, depicted Battulga as being a candidate close to Vladimir Putin. Naturally, Turkey currently … Continue reading →

Posted in Bilateral Aid, Dénes Jäger, Foreign Policy, Turkey | 1 Comment

Populism and the Judiciary

Posted on July 21, 2017 by JDierkes

By Julian Dierkes Populists around the world seem to be targeting the judiciary as some kind of obstacle to implementing the “people’s will”. Most recently, this is happening in Poland, where the governing party PiS is trying to usurp rights … Continue reading →

Posted in Corruption, Judiciary, Presidential 2017 | Tagged Julian Dierkes | 2 Comments

Republished: Mongolia – An Unexpected Bastion of Democracy Thanks to Its Youth

Posted on July 18, 2017 by JDierkes

A child walks past Mongolians holding up banners at a protest against offshore account holders in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in March. (AP Photo/Ganbat Namjilsangarav) Julian Dierkes, University of British Columbia By some accounts, democracy is under pressure. Freedom House, the American … Continue reading →

Posted in Populism, Presidential 2017 | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Guest Post: CIRDI Workshop Mongolian Young Professionals Shining