‘It’s Easy to Resign’: Popular Protests Succeed in Ending Mongolian PM’s Tenure
Economic development proves insufficient in placating the will of the Mongolian people.
Since mid-May, Ulaanbaatar has been embroiled in mass, youth-led protests, condemning the opaque finances of Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene and his family. Referred to as the Ogtsrokh Amarhan protests (meaning “it’s easy to resign” in Mongolian), the daily gatherings were catalyzed by leaked Instagram posts of lavish birthday gifts, including designer handbags (which have since become an important protest symbol) given by Oyun-Erdene’s son, 23-year-old Harvard student Temulen, to his girlfriend. Following a failed parliamentary vote of confidence in the prime minister on June 3, the protesters achieved one of their core demands, which was Oyun-Erdene’s resignation. Although the protests have vividly demonstrated the political will of the Mongolian people, they have also yielded a period of heightened uncertainty for Mongolia. The protests have highlighted fractures in the country’s ruling coalition and power struggles in the dominant Mongolian People’s Party (MPP), all at a time when the country’s strong post-COVID economic performance faces formidable headwinds from rising inflation, a decline in global coal prices, and historically high government debt.
Underscoring the uncertainty Mongolia is now projecting to the rest of the world, Oyun-Erdene’s resignation came just hours after the end of Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow’s official visit to the country, the first such visit by a Turkmen president since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1992. During a session of parliament convened on June 2 that ran into the early morning hours of June 3, PM Oyun-Erdene, President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, and a senior member of the Democratic Party, Odon Tsogtgerel, all spoke before the parliamentary vote of confidence took place.
In defense of his performance as prime minister, Oyun-Erdene touted the numerous projects his coalition government had kickstarted, many of them stalled for decades before the coalition spearheaded their approval, including a new hydropower plant, energy sector reform and price liberalization, a joint uranium mining project with France, and a cross-border railway project with China. Oyun-Erdene also reminded parliament that, during his tenure as prime minister, “Mongolia’s export revenues and overall economy have doubled, GDP has risen from MNT [(Tugrik)] 37.4 trillion to MNT 80 trillion, GDP per capita has steadily increased from USD 4,128 to USD 6,898 over the past three years, the sovereign credit rating has advanced by one level, the Government’s standing with international financial institutions has strengthened, and investor interest in Mongolia has grown.”
In a speech analyst Amar Adiya characterized as ‘the clearest sign yet of deep fractures within the ruling Mongolian People’s Party,’ President Khurelsukh ‘reminded the members of the parliament that they were elected to represent the people, not a single political figure,’ essentially implying to parliament that they should oust Oyun-Erdene. This came as a shock not only because Khurelsukh and Oyun-Erdene are both MPP members, but also because Oyun-Erdene had been seen as Khurelsukh’s protege at one time. During his speech, President Khurelsukh also emphasized that he will not seek to amend the Mongolian constitution to make possible a currently-illegal second presidential term or steer the country toward adopting a more presidential system, which was important given ‘increased suspicion of [a constitutional] amendment that might reshape the presidency’ among opposition politicians and analysts.
Speaking on behalf of the Democratic Party, which controls the second-most seats in Mongolia’s parliament and was one of three separate parties that made up the now-defunct coalition headed by the MPP, Tsogtgerel indicated that all members of parliament from the Democratic Party would abstain from the confidence vote as a demonstration of the party’s lack of confidence in the prime minister, since the party saw the vote ‘as an unprincipled move that misleads the public’ and fails to ‘[address] citizens’ legitimate demands to disclose [Oyun-Erdene] and his affiliates’ expenditures and lawful sources of income.’ Tsogtgerel went on to explain that the MDP’s May 21 decision to expel the Democratic Party from the coalition government, effectively disbanding it, was a ‘flagrant violation’ of the inter-party agreement on which the coalition was established, though this act was another explicit demand outlined by protesters.
After discussions ended, the vote of confidence was finally held via secret ballot. 82 of Mongolia’s 126 parliament members voted, with the overwhelming majority of abstentions coming from the Democratic Party’s 42 parliament members. 44 members voted in favor of Oyun-Erdene, while 38 voted for his ouster. The prime minister fell considerably short of the 64 votes he needed to survive the confidence vote, effectively bringing an end to Oyun-Erdene’s premiership.
Currently carrying out a caretaker role until a successor is chosen, the nearly four-and-a-half years Oyun-Erdene has spent as prime minister make him the longest-serving prime minister in democratic Mongolia’s more than 30-year history. Although the Mongolian economy has evolved positively under his premiership, the Mongolian people have signalled a desire for more than just economic stewardship from their elected officials; transparency and ethical comportment are apparently just as important as economic development to Mongolian citizens. Going forward, Oyun-Erdene’s replacement must prioritize propriety just as highly as economic progress or risk facing a fate similar to the outgoing prime minister’s.
The views and information contained in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Asia Cable.
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