Dgexpo/B/Poldep/Note/2008 073 29 April 2008 [PE N°] EN FOR

DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EXTERNAL POLICIES OF THE UNION DIRECTORATE B - POLICY DEPARTMENT -

NOTE ON THE POLITICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE OF THE

AUTONOMOUS REGION OF INNER MONGOLIA

CHINA

Abstract: This note outlines the political structure and situation in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China.

Any opinions expressed in this document are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position of the European Parliament.

FOR EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT INTERNAL USE ONLY

DGExPo/B/PolDep/Note/2008_073 29 April 2008 [PE N°] EN This note was requested by the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with China on 21 April 2008

This paper is published in the following languages: English

Author: JiYeon PARK under the authority of Xavier Nuttin

Manuscript completed in April 2008

Copies can be obtained through: E-mail: [email protected]

Brussels, European Parliament, 29 April 2008

Sources: BBC News China Business Review China Labor Watch CHINAGATE.COM.CN China News Digest CHINA.ORG.CN China Vitae Courrier International Economist Intelligence Unit Inner Mongolian People's Party Oxford Analytica People's Daily Online Perspectives Reporters Without Borders Socialist Viewpoint Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) Wikipedia World Bank World Socialist Website

Map: www.paulnoll.com/China/Provinces

2 TABLE OF CONTENT

1. GENERAL BACKGROUND ···························································································4

2. POLITICAL STRUCTURE ·······························································································5 2.1. LOCAL POLITICAL BODIES AND LEADERSHIP ·······································6 2.2. OPPOSITION IN EXILE ·····················································································6

3. ECONOMIC SITUATION ·································································································7

4. SOME KEY ISSUES ···········································································································8 4.1. HUMAN RIGHTS ·································································································8 4.2. ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION ·······························································8 4.3. 'ECOLOGICAL MIGRATION' PROGRAMME ···············································9

ANNEXES:

1. MAP OF CHINA/ MAP OF INNER MONGOLIA ······································10 2. POLITICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS OF CHINA ·············11 3. REPRESSION IN INNER MONGOLIA ······················································12 4. EP'S RESOLUTION ON INNER MONGOLIA, SEPTEMBER 1996 ······13

3 1. GENERAL BACKGROUND

- Administration type: Autonomous region of the People's Republic of China - Capital: Hohhot (with a population of 780,000) - Surface: 1, 183,000 Km2 (3rd largest subdivision of China with 12.3% of China's total) - Population: 23.9 million (1.9% of the total Chinese population) - 80% of its population is Han Chinese and 17%, Mongolian. - Urban population: 43% - Density: 20.2hab/km² - GDP(2006): US$ 60.1 billion (a growth of 18% from 2005) - GDP per capita: US$ 2,500 (the 10th highest in the PRC) - Major cities: Baotou (with a population of 1,111,000)

Inner Mongolia was established as an autonomous region on May 1st, 1947 before the founding of the Republic of China on October 1st, 1949. Present-day Inner Mongolia, which has expanded westwards since its establishment, stretches 2,400 km from west to east and 1,700 km from north to south. It borders eight provinces and regions1 in its south, east and west and Mongolia and Russia in the north, with a borderline of 4,200 km.

Inner Mongolia is mainly composed of upland and plateau areas covered with grasslands, where the nomadic existence of tribesmen and herdsmen has formed the unique culture of Inner Mongolia today. However, with increasing human activities and animal herding, desertification now affects 60% of the region's total land area, and is spreading at the rate of approximately 600,000 hectares a year.

The central governmental has had a policy of organizing the transfer of large numbers of Han Chinese population to the region for many years, and as a result, the demography of what is now Inner Mongolia has shifted to Han Chinese-dominance. According to some opposition groups in exile, transformation of the ethnic composition of the region and assimilation of the local population into Han Chinese culture has been part of Chinese policy for "cultural genocide". These groups are calling for the independence of Inner Mongolia, but do not have as much influence as the resistance movement in Tibet. However, harsh Chinese policies against the ethnic minority are drawing greater attention from the outside world, particularly concerning human rights issues.

Inner Mongolia is well known for its abundant natural resources such as coal, forests, grasslands, minerals2, water etc. The exploitation of its natural resources has brought fast economic growth in the region. However, inefficient and excessive exploitation is also causing serious environmental concerns in the region such as desertification and water scarcity.

1 Provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and Gansu. 2 Reserves of more than 120 of the world's 140 kinds of minerals: 84.59 million tons(80% of the world's total), the second largest coal reserves in China: 223.9 billion tons 4 2. POLITICAL STRUCTURE

The constitution of the People's Republic of China provides for three de jure levels of government. However, there are currently five practical levels3 of local government in mainland China: the province, prefecture, county, township, and village. An autonomous region is the first-level administrative subdivision of China, like a province, and therefore it has its own local government. Theoretically, an autonomous region, which is a minority entity, has legislative rights similar to a province. However, in reality, the autonomy in this region is often in question and some analysts say that Inner Mongolia is autonomous only in name. Worrying that a nationalist movement inspired by Outer Mongolia which has been free from Soviet control since its break-up in 1991, might spread to Inner Mongolia like the movements in Tibet and Xinjiang, the Public Security Bureau maintains tight controls over the region.

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is divided into 101 county-level divisions ( 21 districts, 11 county-level cities, 7 counties, 49 banners and 3 autonomous banners) and again divided into 1425 township-level divisions (532 towns, 407 townships, 277 sumu, 8 ethnic townships, 1 ethnic sumu and 190 sub-districts).

The 1979 reform mandates that the Communist Party of China (CPC) should not interfere with the administrative activities of local government organs and that its function should be confined to "political leadership" to ensure that the party's line is correctly followed and implemented. These efforts to improve transparency are limited, however. The Communist Party still exercises control over the lawmaking process at every level. Representatives in the Local People's Congress have limited accountability, as direct elections only take place at the very lowest levels. While some observers argue that the elections familiarise the Chinese people with the tools of democracy and could lead to a yearning for greater popular representation at higher levels of government, critics charge that the election process only serves to strengthen Communist Party control. Moreover, the elections that do take place have many deficiencies - there are no competing political parties, candidates are not granted access to the media, and secret ballot booths often are inadequately administered. In the 1970s, the central government launched the simplification of the administrative machinery and initiated a decentralisation of power. As a result, the regions and enterprises have gained a relative autonomy. Local authorities now control judicial authorities and the Discipline Inspection Departments. The Chinese taxation system is now decentralised: national and provincial taxation services are separated, with taxes on local enterprises and income taxes now being a province competence. The reform has involved the devolution of considerable decision-making authority to provincial and lower levels. Nevertheless, these lower levels are always vulnerable to changes in direction and decisions originated at the central level of government. In this respect, all local bodies are essentially extensions of the central government authorities and thus are responsible to the "unified leadership" of the central organs.

3 Annex 2: Political and administrative division of China 5 2.1 Local political bodies and leadership Local People’s Congress (LPC): Inner Mongolia Regional People’s Congress The Local People's Congress is the local organ of state power. The Chinese Constitution charges the Local Congress and Government with legislation on specific matters relating to the localities and drafting local regulations to implement certain National People's Congress (NPC) laws. It has the power to decide important local affairs in its respective administrative areas. The LPC elects the heads of the local government organisations and has the right to recall these officials and to demand explanations for their actions. The People's Congress holds meetings every other month to supervise provincial-level government activities.

Local People’s Government: Inner Mongolia Regional Government4 The administrative arm of the LPC is the Local People's Government. Local governments have the power to draft regulations or detailed implementation rules similar to those that a State Council ministry would draft. Local governments, confident of their growing economic power - as a result of recent reforms and the opening of the country - often seek increased independence to try and protect their local interests, which are increasingly linked to private enterprise. An Autonomous region normally has a large amount of discretion with regard to economic policy like the provinces, however, in reality the Chairman- most often ethnic Mongolian- is usually under the control of the more powerful Communist Party Regional Committee Secretary5, generally an Han Chinese from a different part of China. The autonomy of the local government is therefore very limited.

Local leadership of Inner Mongolia: - Secretary of the local committee of the CPC : Chu Bo Chu Bo (male, Han nationality-Anhui) was born in 1944 and joined the CPC in 1975. He serves as CPC Secretary since 2001 and was previously a governor of Hunan from1998 to 2001. - Chairman of Local People's Government: Bagatur Bagatur (male, Mongolian) took up the post of a governor in March 2008. - Former Chairman of Inner Mongolia (2003-2008):Yang Jing Yang Jing (male, Mongolian) was born in 1953 and elected a Central Committee member in 2007. He served as a chairman of Inner Mongolia from 2003 to 2008 and became the Chairman of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission in March, 2008. The State Ethnic Affairs Commission reports to the State Council of China and is responsible for relations between the Central Government and non-Han Chinese citizens of China.

2.2 Opposition in Exile In March 1997, the Inner Mongolian People’ Party (IMPP) was established in New York, to end the Chinese Communist Party’s "colonial rule in Inner Mongolia" and uphold the principles of democracy and peace. Its ultimate goal is to achieve the independence of Inner Mongolia and the unification of all Mongols.

4 The Inner Mongolia government and its subsidiaries follow roughly the same structure as that of a normal province. 5 The LPC is responsible for its work to the People’s Congress at the corresponding levels and its Standing Committee. 6 The IMPP bases its independence movement on the assertion that historically, Mongolia has always been an integrated and independent nation. The IMPP claims that Inner Mongolia enjoys autonomy in name only as there are many restrictions on activities to promote Mongolian history and culture. The opposition party also says that there is growing hate and conflict between the ethnic Mongols and the Chinese Han as a result of migration, assimilation policy and the poor quality of life of the Mongols under the current regime. The current leaders are: - President: Xi Haiming(Temtselt)6 - Executive Director: Oyunbiling(Wu Yun Bi Ge) - West-coast Branch Director: Munkh Altanbat - Other leading members: Bache/ Enkhbat/ D.Muren/ Erdenbat/ Chagaanbaatar

The Southern Mongolian Democratic Alliance (SMDA) organization was originally named "Mongolian Culture Rescue Committee" and Mr. Hada was elected chairman (see 4. Human Rights below). In 1994, this group created a journal: Voice of Southern Mongolia, and in 1995 initiated a constitution outlining the Alliance’s main mission as “opposing colonization by the Han people and striving for self-determination, freedom and democracy in Southern [Inner] Mongolia.” Voice of Southern Mongolia was banned in 1995.

3. ECONOMIC SITUATION:

Inner Mongolia's land mass is the third largest in China. Its grasslands account for one fourth of China's total grassland area, and its forest area is the second largest in China. It has substantial coal reserves as well as rich rare-earth resources. Its solar power and wind power resources are rich, but the province lacks water resources. Inner Mongolia is one of China's livestock bases, and is the largest of China's five main pastoral areas. Taking advantage of its geographical features and rich resources, Inner Mongolia has achieved rapid economic development, particularly through farming, livestock and industry. In 2006, the gross domestic product of the region amounted to US$ 60.1 billion, which represents a growth of 18% from 2005. Its per capita GDP rose from US$ 1986 in 2005 to US$ 2,500 in 2006. When Inner Mongolia was established as an autonomous region, the agricultural output constituted 90 percent of the economy, while light industry and heavy industry accounted for 8.3 and 1.7 percent respectively. Agriculture and livestock have developed rapidly with the output of milk, mutton and cashmere ranked first in the country.'7 However, industry has also quickly developed coal, steel, power generation, and forestry-related industries and the increased value of industrial output reflected 41.3% of the regional GDP in 2006, according to official statistics. Currently, Inner Mongolia invests most of its efforts in the development of six industries - energy, chemicals, metallurgy, processing of agriculture and livestock products, equipment manufacturing and high technology products.

Although the natural resources played an important part in the economic growth of the region, the inefficient approach to their exploitation has resulted in very poor returns so far. Thus, questions have been raised in regards to Inner Mongolia's plan to double annual coal output (260 million tons in 2005) by 2010.

6 Oyunbilig, Erdenbat and Chagaanbaatar, trained by the US government and CIA, are more influential in reality. 7 'Social and Economic Development of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region': CHINAGATE.COM.CN

7 4. SOME KEY ISSUES

4.1. Human rights

The Inner Mongolian People’ Party (IMPP) condemns 60 years of Chinese occupation of Inner Mongolia and China’s systematic human rights violations against Inner Mongolians, including political repression, cultural genocide, arbitrary and summary executions, torture of political prisoners, and denial of the ethnic groups’ rights to determine their own political destinies.

It calls for the immediate release of all political prisoners held in Chinese prisons including Mr.Hada, and Mr. Jiranbayariin Soyolt. Mr. Hada is the founder of 'the Southern Mongolian Democracy Alliance', a human rights organisation, and the editor of 'Voice of the Southern Mongolia'. He has been serving a 15-year prison sentence for separatism and espionage since 1995, and the EP has called on the Government of China to re-open his trial in a resolution voted in September 1996. According to his wife, his health condition is extremely poor.

Mr. Soyolt is an IMPP member who was arrested in the Beijing Capital Airport by the Chinese authorities on 6 January, 2008 while on a business trip to China along with two other Mongolian citizens. He is a long-term dissident, human rights activist, and one of the founding members of several exiled groups based in Mongolia. He was one of the leaders of the 1981 Mongolian Student Movement, a mass protest by ethnic Mongolian students and intellectuals against the Chinese Central Government’s plan to migrate 600,000 Hans to Southern Mongolia without the consultation of local Mongols. In 1992, he went into exile and continued his human rights activities, criticizing the Chinese Government’s ethnic policy, and defending the human rights of the Mongols in China.

4.2. Environmental degradation:

As a result of its special geological condition, Inner Mongolia features a harsh eco-environment. The combination of air pollution due to the high dependence on coal, excessive deforestation ( for forest-related industries) and grassland degradation (by over-cropping) cause serious environmental problems such as desertification, dust storms, water scarcity, loss of biodiversity, soil erosion, flood and drought . Problems of desertification and water scarcity are especially serious in the northern part of China, including Inner Mongolia. The desertification affects 60% of the region's total land area and it is continuously spreading at the rate of 667,000 hectares a year. It brings frequent dust storms, which carry toxicant particles and is susceptible to causing respiratory problems. These dust storms affect not only close domestic regions, like Beijing and Tianjin, but also the neighboring countries. The high amount of silt in rivers and dust storms also add to the water pollution and scarcity.

Dust storms and deteriorating condition of Inner Mongolia's grasslands have become a priority for Chinese environmental scientists and agronomists. 'The International Grassland and Rangeland Congress' will be held in Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia, during the first of week of July and 'will focus on the environmental, demographic and industrial trends that are turning Inner Mongolia to a desert', according to Hong Fuzen, head of the preparatory committee of the 2008 Congress and grassland scientist. The blowing sand, in short, is more evidence of the consequences of the irrational duel China fights daily as it promotes rapid industrial development while exposing land,

DGExPo/B/PolDep/Note/2008_073 29 April 2008 [PE N°] EN water, communities and people to levels of pollution, waste and resource depletion never before seen on the planet. China, particularly Inner Mongolia, has abundant coal reserves which has become its main energy resource. Coal has brought economic growth in the region, but has also had serious impacts on safety and environment. Low coal prices have discouraged the investment in safety precautions and research for scientific exploitation and has led to mass consumption. Consequently, the lives of many miners have been lost, and subsequent environmental problems such as the greenhouse effect, acid rain and yellow sand are perpetuated.

4.3. 'Ecological migration' programme:

The programme is highly contentious and has for objective to relocate 640,000 Mongols, Kazakh and Tibetan herders from the grasslands of Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and Tibet into towns and cities. The government explained that it was 'to reduce pressure on the grasslands from overgrazing. It was initiated in Inner Mongolia in 2001, but Mongols view the policy as discriminatory, and as a programme designed to make water, minerals and land more accessible to Han Chinese business and immigrants.'

The relocation program has prompted frequent and sometimes violent protests. Still, almost every current assessment, even those by the Chinese government, indicates the technical and policy programs have not stopped the deserts.

9 Annexe 1. Map of China/ Map of Inner Mongolia

10 Annexe 2. Political and administrative division of China

Level Name Types

Provinces are theoretically  Provinces (22) subservient to the PRC central  Autonomous regions (5) government, but in practice 1 Province level  Municipalities (4) provincial officials have a  Special administrative regions (2) large amount of discretion with regard to economic policy.

 Prefectures (17)  Autonomous prefectures (30) 2 Prefecture level  Prefecture-level cities (283)  Leagues (3) Prefecture-level and county- level cities are generally  Counties (1464) composed of an urban centre  Autonomous counties (117) and surrounding rural areas  County-level cities (374) much larger than the urban core.  Districts (852) 3 County level  Banners (49)  Autonomous banners (3)  Forestry areas (1)  Special districts (2)

 Townships (16130)  Ethnic townships (1126)  Towns (19892) 4 Township level  Subdistricts (5829)  District public offices (20)  Sumu (277)  Ethnic Sumu (1)

The village level serves as organisational (census, mail  Neighbourhood committees system) and has not so much - Neighbourhood or importance in political communities representative power. Village level Basic local divisions like 5 (informal)  Village committees or Village neighbourhoods and groups communities are not informal - Administrative villages like in the West, but have - Natural villages defined boundaries and designated heads (one per area)

11 Annexe 3. European Parliament's Adoption of the Resolution on Inner Mongolia

"He has been tried according to the law and we cannot interfere in the judicial process. China has its own laws and we act in accordance with them", he said. China, in 1988, ratified the UN Convention against China-InnerMongolia 26.07.2007 torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

Repression in Inner Mongolia continues as jailed journalist is The European Parliament passed a resolution in September 1996, mistreated and websites closed. calling on the Chinese government to reopen the trial of Hada, in the presence of international observers, a request that the Chinese Reporters Without Borders has renewed an appeal for the release of authorities ignored. journalist, Hada [one name], a Mongolian political prisoner since 1995, whose family says he has recently been maltreated, and also As well as editing The Voice of the Southern Mongolia, Hada was condemned the denial of free expression online to the Mongolian involved in the Southern Mongolian Democracy Alliance (SMDA), a minority. human rights organisation campaigning for the rights of the minority in Inner Mongolia, which led to his sentence of 15 years for "separatism" "The slogan for the Beijing Olympics, ’One World, One Dream’, leaves and "espionage" in 1996. a bitter taste for China’s minorities," the worldwide press freedom organisation said. "Despite denials by the authorities, human rights The popular discussion forum Mongolian Youth Forum violations are frequent against inhabitants of the occupied regions, (www.mglzaluus.com/bbs) was closed by the authorities on 12 July. Tibet, Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia." According to the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Centre (SMHRIC), which contacted one of the site’s administrators, Hada, editor of The Voice of the Southern Mongolia, is regularly ill- Elsen, the forum was censored because it was operating without treated in Chifeng jail where he is serving a 15-year prison sentence. permission. According to Elsen, the real problem was linked to frequent His wife, Xinna, recently exposed the abuse which has been inflicted discussions it hosted about "ethnic problems" in the Chinese province. on him and said that his health was deteriorating as a result. The discussion forum, Nutuge, was earlier closed, in February 2004, on the orders of the Public Security Bureau after it posted a message Governor of Inner Mongolia, Yang Jing, denied the accusations when considered to be "illegal". The forum, created in 2002, had become one questioned by Reuters news agency on 25 July. He rejected the of the most popular in Inner Mongolia and mainly dealt with possibility of Hada being released on the eve of the Beijing Olympics. Mongolian culture and history. It did not deal with "sensitive" political and religious questions. DGExPo/B/PolDep/Note/2008_073 29 April 2008 [PE N°] EN Five other websites have reportedly been closed or blocked in recent months, according to the SMHRIC, for posting "separatist content" or "discussion of ethnic problems".

13 Annex 4. European Parliament's Resolution on Inner Mongolia, September 1996

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on abuses of human rights in the People's Republic of China and annexed territories, A. whereas the People's Republic of China has pursued a repressive policy with regard to the population of Inner Mongolia ever since the 1947 occupation, and whereas in the course of 50 years of Chinese rule over 150 000 Mongols have disappeared and 800 000 have been imprisoned, B. whereas Mr Hada, founder of the Southern Mongolian Democracy Alliance (SMDA) was arrested on a charge of separatism, sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment and deprived of political rights for a period of 4 years,

C. having regard to recent events in Hohhot, capital of Inner Mongolia, which led to the arrest of a large number of SMDA supporters involved in efforts to preserve Mongolia's cultural and linguistic heritage,

D. denouncing the continuing practice of organizing the movement of large numbers of people to Inner Mongolia with a view to transforming the ethnic composition of the region, which has resulted in over 20 million Chinese settling in Inner Mongolia and reduced the native population to an insignificant minority (3.6 million Mongols according to 1992 estimates),

E. denouncing the use by the Chinese authorities of sterilization and forced abortion as methods of controlling population numbers,

F. whereas Buddhist monasteries continue to be destroyed in Inner Mongolia and the Mongol people's cultural, religious and linguistic integrity is continually under attack,

G. whereas, consequently, open and continuous discussions must be conducted between the European Union and the People's Republic of China, with particular reference to the extremely important questions of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms,

H. whereas it is the duty of the European Union to intervene, with all the means at its disposal, to oppose any policy that threatens the integrity of populations or sections of it, or that aims to suppress their culture or their aspirations to autonomy,

I. deeply concerned by the growing instability in Tibet and East Turkestan (Xinjiang), which are occupied by the People's Republic of China, and by the potential consequences for neighbouring regions,

1. Condemns the policy of the People's Republic of China, which aims to suppress the culture, religion and language of the population of Inner Mongolia and to stifle the Mongolian people's legitimate aspirations to autonomy;

2. Calls on the government of the People's Republic of China to embark on political dialogue with the Mongol opposition, with a view to reaching a peaceful negotiated settlement of the question;

3. Calls on the Chinese government to release all prisoners convicted of offences which are not recognized as such under the relevant international law and treaties;

4. Calls on the Chinese government to take immediate action to re-open the trial of Mr Hada, the founder of the SMDA, and the other activists arrested, in the presence of international observers;

5. Calls on the Chinese government to allow journalists and international observers free entry to Inner Mongolia;

6. Condemns the Chinese authorities for the discriminatory economic and political treatment applied to the population of the occupied regions of Inner Mongolia, East Turkestan and Tibet, and to other ethnic minorities;

7. Calls on the Commission to include, in the cooperation agreements with China, a clause prohibiting ethnic and political discrimination, and to set up effective bodies to monitor the application of that clause;

8. Calls on the Commission and the Council to bring pressure to bear on the authorities of the People's Republic of China to ensure respect for human rights and fundamental rights, whether on Chinese territory or in Inner Mongolia, Tibet and East Turkestan;

9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the parliaments of the Member States, the government of the People's Republic of China, the representatives of the Mongolian opposition in exile, the representatives of the opposition of East Turkestan in exile and the Tibetan government in exile. 15