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Suhbaatar Duureg No 8, City Cultural Palace, Tower G, 3d Floor, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, 210620-A, P.O.B 28
Tel /fax: 9761 1 32 4764, Tel: 976 11 32 46 27, E-mail: globe@magicnet.mn, web: www.globeinter.org.mn, http://www.monitoring.mn/
Media release
Globe International, Mongolia
Globe International protests the Mongolian President’s Decree to temporarily stop all the radio and broadcasting stations except for the Mongolian national Radio and Television.
On July 2, 2008 Globe International has issued a Statement protesting the Decree of the Mongolian President N.Enkhbayar on the State of Emergency issued on July 1, 2008, which ceased the functions of all radio and televsion broadcasting stations except the Mongolian National Radio and Televsion for four days.
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Globe International criticizes the Government of Mongolia that the authorities do not permit the journalists of other televisions channels to enter the Government house report on the extraordinary Parliament session, government meetings related to the issues raised after the Presidential Decree.
Globe International deeply regrets that the authorities abused the media freedom intentionally using the provisions of the 1995 Law on the State of Emergency.
“The provision of the Law on the State of Emergency is very old and it overlaps the 1998 Law on Media Freedom and 2005 Law on the Public Radio and Television. It is shame that the Government determined censorship on news of the Mongolian National Radio and Television” said H. Naranjargal, President of Globe International in her interview published by Odriin Sonin (Daily News).
Globe International is seriously concerned that the Mongolian government has started censoring the public media ignoring the public’s right to know the truth.
Globe International is confident that these actions are not justified and not legitimate, and the media’s right to tell the truth is seriously violated
Media freedom is one of the fundamental human rights and any democratic country cannot violate the freedoms of expression and freedom in such a restrictive and non-democratic way.
Globe International believes that lack of the citizens’ right to pluralistic information will create anger and the loss of faith among the public, and promote only injustice.
Therefore, we demand the President and Parliament to urgently terminate this decision and allow the other broadcasters to start their airing immediately.
Globe International is a Mongolian NGO founded in 1999 and promotes the freedoms of expression, information and media.
Additional information
Mongolia’s 2008 Parliamentarian elections were held on June 29, 2008 and 12 political parties and one coalition contested for 76 seats. Next day, on June 30, 2008 the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (MPRP) convened a press conference and stated that they won the elections with absolute majority. That time, the General Election Commission did not officially announce the final results of the elections. The opposition parties protested the results stating the elections were not fair and they demanded the re-counting of the vote. The opposition parties organized the public demonstration in front of the building of the MPRP. After few hours the demonstrators started attacking the building and burning it. The police could not control the situation. Now the building was entirely burnt. Afterwards it turned to the mass disorder and the riots started vandalizing and robbing the MPRP building. The attacked building of the City Cultural Palace complex located on behalf of the MPRP building. Bloc B of the complex fully burnt and Bloc C was partly suffered from the fire. The offices located at all other blocs have been robbed and vandalized.
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We regret we are not able to normally work because of carbon monoxide fumes from the burning. The office of Globe International located in the Bloc G, is heavily sooty. There are no electricity and water. We are seeking a new office at the moment.