The US State Department released its annual report to Congress on the state of human rights across the globe on March 3. The department has been mandated by Congress to annually report on all countries receiving assistance since 1961 and on all United Nations member states since 1974. A link to the full text of the Mongolia section follows below.
The executive summary of the Mongolia country report included the following findings:
“Parliamentary elections in 2016 and the presidential election in 2013 were generally free and fair, although observers expressed concern about late changes to the election law before the parliamentary elections and said the law’s vague equal access provisions undermined the media’s ability to provide information to voters.
“Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control over the security forces.
“The most significant human rights problems were corruption and widespread domestic violence. Vague laws and a lack of transparency in legislative, executive, and judicial processes undermined government efficiency and invited corruption. Courts failed to function as independent and neutral adjudicators of criminal prosecutions and civil disputes. Domestic violence was pervasive and the government did not address it effectively.
“Other human rights problems included police abuse of prisoners and detainees; poor conditions in detention centers; arbitrary arrests and lengthy pretrial detentions; government restrictions on media content; restrictions on the freedom of assembly; child abuse; exit bans; trafficking in persons; discrimination against persons with disabilities; discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons; and harsh labor conditions for certain foreign contract workers, including their exploitation through the garnishment of wages.
“Government steps to punish officials who committed abuses or to rectify discrimination were inconsistent.”
Click here for full Text of 2016 Mongolia Human Rights Report
