MONGOLIA: Mayor of Ulaanbaatar city seizes land from poor families 

Dear Friends

SITUATION:

The unexpected and unjustifiable decision of Mr. M.Enkhbold, the Mayor of Ulaanbaatar city has caused a real tragedy for five poor families living in the Bayanzurkh district of Ulaanbaatar. The decision No.159 signed by Mr.Enkhbold remained secret from April 25, 2003. The 37 five family members who are affected by this are trying to find out why they have had to leave their land during the land privatization instead of being able to keep their land where they have lived for 10-38 years. No one was not allowed even to see the City Mayor’s decision No.159 and the officials of the district governor and police have been repeatedly running the families from their land between May 28-June 28, 2003.

The five families, who men settled in Ulaanbaatar in 1965, are comprised of five pensioners of 57-90 years old, eight children under 16, two men with disabled status, 19 unemployed adults and four students living in ‘gers’, which are movable round dwelling for three generations. They have been living in five yards totaling 0.15 hectares. The average income of a family is U.S 25 dollars a month. Land Privatization Law was their hope for a better life.

When the Land Privatization Law came into effect on May 1, 2003, Mr. Lkhagvadorj, Mr. Battumur, Mr. Altangerel, Mr. Amgalanbayar and Mrs.Norjmaa applied to the Byanzurkh district land office for re-registration of their old land certificate. Their applications were received and the land of 0.03 hectare each was re-registered by the district land office on May 05, 2003. They were told to wait for up to three months in order to get land ownership certificate issued by the Capital City Governor’s Office.

On May 28, the district land officer, a policeman, and a man from the Mongolian United Federation The Owners of small and medium enterprises (MUFOSME) came to the families and handed them the demand on freeing the land, issued by Mr.Tselmeg, the Capital City General Architect. According to the demand, the families would have to move from their land because the land has been given to the MUFOSME under decision No.159 issued by the City Mayor. However, the families were not given any information about the exact content of the decision, reimbursement issues or their right to claim for land ownership on their home place etc.

Mr.Altangerel, Mr.Lkhagvadorj , Mr. Nayanbaatar and other head of families strongly opposed the decision to seize the land and stood by their right not to move from the land which they legally possessed. However, the threat was made that force would be used against them. They all heard land officers and a person from MUFOSME saying that it would be an easy job to free five yards. After the land officer and police failed to seize the families land four times, the MUFOSME, headed by Mr. Odonchimed, a member of parliament and a ruling Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (MPRP) candidate, complained to the Bayanzurkh district court claiming the land. Now those poor families are searching for an advocate to represent them although they have no money to pay for lawyer yet.

Mayor Enkhbold’s decision to seize the families’ land breaks the decision of the Capital City Council issued in early April, 2003 which promised that all families legally residing on land would be privatized to their possessors without any condition. This decision was issued after several demonstrations organized by the Fairer Land Privatization Movement caught wide public attention during November 2002- April 2003. Mongolia, a traditional nomads’ country with a population of 2.4 millions and 1.52 million square kilometers of territory, is going to privatize its land for the first time in its history. The State Great Hural of Mongolia adopted the Law on the Private Land several months ago and it has been to be in effect since May 2003.

SUGGESTIED ACTION:
Please send a letter to the addresses below and copy your letter to Liberty Center at liberty_c@mongolnet.mn:

1. Mr.Nambar Enkhbayar
Prime Minister
Government House, Ulaanbaatar-12,
MONGOLIA
Fax: +976 11 328329

2. Mr. M.Enkhbold,
Mayor of Ulaanbaatar City
Jigjidjar Street 4, Sukhbaatar, Square11,
Ulaanbaatar 46,Ulaanbaatar City Hall
Mongolia

3. Ms. Batchuluun Khishigsaikhan
Director
National Human Rights Commission of Mongolia
Floor 5, Goverment building 11,
Liberty Square, Ulaanbator 38,
Mongolia
Phone: (+976 11) 316509
Fax: (+976 11) 327136/320284
Email: b.khishigsaikhan@nhrc-mn.org

4. UNHCHR Mongolia
C/o UNDP Resident Representative
P.O. Box 46/1009
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Fax: 976-1-326458
E-mail: unchrmon@magicnet.mn

5. Mr. Miloon Kothari
The Special Rapporteur on adequate housing of the United Nations
Room 4-066, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Palais Wilson, Rue des Paquis 52,
Geneva Switzerland

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