University of Chicago Law School Chicago Unbound Journal Articles Faculty Scholarship 1995 Between Russia and China: Political Reform in Mongolia Tom Ginsburg Follow this and additional works at: https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/journal_articles Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Tom Ginsburg, "Between Russia and China: Political Reform in Mongolia," 35 Asian Survey 459 (1995). This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at Chicago Unbound. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal Articles by an authorized administrator of Chicago Unbound. For more information, please contact [email protected]. POLITICALREFORM IN MONGOLIA BetweenRussia and China Tom Ginsburg Transformingsocialist regimes can be broadlycharac- terizedin twoways. The Chinesemodel in whicheconomic liberalization is adoptedwithout political competition has been replicatedto varyingdegrees by otherAsian socialistregimes in the Lao People's DemocraticRepublic and the SocialistRepublic of Vietnam. In contrast,the EasternEuropean modelis one ofpolitical change proceeding apace witheconomic reform. An interestingcase combiningelements of these two models of socialisttransfor- mationis thatof Mongolia,formerly the Mongolian People's Republic. For 70 yearsa clientstate of theSoviet Union, Mongolia was sometimesknown as the unofficial"sixteenth republic" of the USSR. Followingthe radical changesin EasternEurope in 1990,Mongolia's Communist Party introduced politicalpluralism but unlikeits counterpartsin thosecountries, the Mon- golianPeople's RevolutionaryParty (MPRP) has retainedpower since 1990 despiteallowing electoral competition and politicalfreedom. It has intro- ducedsignificant economic reforms, which may soon beginto produceposi- tivegrowth. Amongformer Soviet bloc nations,Mongolia's economy was themost de- pendenton outsideassistance measured as a percentageof GDP. Whenthe Soviet bloc disintegratedand cut offits aid to poorersocialist countries, Mongoliaexperienced the most serious peacetime economic collapse any na- tionhas facedduring this century.' Yet Mongolia'spolitical road has proved remarkablysmooth compared to mostof theformer Soviet republics. There havebeen no violentattempts to overthrowthe government, and althoughthe oppositionhas been activeand vocal,political conflict has by and largebeen Tom Ginsburgis a doctoralcandidate in theJurisprudence and Social PolicyProgram, University of Californiaat Berkeley.The authorwould like to thankHashbatyn Hulan and Dan King forhelpful comments on a draftof thisarticle. ? 1995 by The Regentsof theUniversity of California 1. PeterBoone, "Grassroots Economic Reform in Mongolia,"paper prepared for the confer- ence, SocialistEconomies in Transition,Asia Foundation,May 1993. 459 This content downloaded from 128.135.12.127 on Fri, 25 Apr 2014 14:01:57 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 460 ASIANSURVEY, VOL. XXXV,NO. 5, MAY 1995 resolvedthrough negotiation and compromise.This articletraces political reformin Mongoliasince the establishment of multipartydemocracy in 1990 withan emphasison understandinghow theMPRP was able to maintainits dominantposition in a multipartyera. It arguesthat the MPRP's short-term resiliencehas been based on a combinationof tacticalsavvy and residual public supportcultivated in the one-partyera. Althoughthis support is di- minishingas economicproblems deepen, the MPRP has shownan abilityto adaptto changingconditions and will likelycontinue to maintainits domi- nantposition for the foreseeable future. Background Situatedin thegrassland steppes between Russia and China,Mongolia has a littleover two millionpeople, several hundred thousand of whomare semi- nomadicherders living a largelyintact traditional lifestyle. Most of there- mainderare concentratedin thecapital city, Ulaanbaatar (red hero). Modem Mongoliais bestunderstood in thecontext of its complexrelationship with China. From1691 until1911, Mongolia was ruledby theManchu conquer- orsof China,but the nomadic Mongol tribes maintained their distinct identity vis-a'-visthe agriculturaliststo the south. Their desire for independence culminatedwith the Mongolian nobility's declaration of an independentstate in 1911 in theaftermath of theChinese revolution. This statewas led by the Bogdo Khan,recognized as a reincarnatedBuddhist lama who was boththe temporaland spiritualleader. Therefollowed a periodof turmoil,reflecting internaldiscord in boththe new Republicof China and TsaristRussia. In 1921 a groupof Mongolian revolutionaries gained control of the country withthe help of the Russian Red Army.The Bogdo Khanwas re-installedas a constitutionalmonarch but after his deathno reincarnationwas identified; thecountry was renamedthe Mongolian People's Republicunder the leader- shipof the Mongolian People's RevolutionaryParty (MPRP), whichincluded a coalitionof bothrightist and leftistelements. Soviet assistanceplayed an essentialrole in the re-establishmentof Mongolianindependence after centuries of Chinesedomination.2 The inti- materelationship between Russia and Mongoliafor the next seven decades reflectedin partthe fearamong Mongols of renewedChinese intervention, forRussia was perceivedas thelesser of two evils. Mongoliannationhood carriedwith it theprice of nearlytotal reliance on theSoviet Union, and this was seen as acceptableby theleadership. Among the population, the close 2. RobertRupen, Mongols of the TwentiethCentury (Bloomington, Ind.: IndianaUniversity Press,1964); C. E. Bawden,The Modern History of Mongolia (London: KeganPaul, 1989),2nd edition. This content downloaded from 128.135.12.127 on Fri, 25 Apr 2014 14:01:57 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions TOM GINSBURG 461 identificationofthe MPRP withthe successful anti-Chinese nationalist move- mentof the 1920s is criticalfor understanding its survivaltoday. The One-PartyPeriod Politicaldevelopments in Mongoliaafter 1924 closelyparalleled those of the USSR. Consistentwith the rise of Stalinin the SovietUnion, the twenties and thirtiessaw a series of violentpurges and forcedcollectivizations in Mongolia,which broke the power of theremaining Buddhist lamaseries and traditionalnobility. By some estimates,over 100,000persons, roughly 15% of thepopulation, were killed during that period.3 Mongolian traditional cul- turewas repressed,and the cyrillic alphabet was introduced.Mongolia's dic- tatorseven became known as juniorversions of their Soviet counterparts: the ruthlessHorolyn Choibalsan (1928-52), who eliminatedhis rivalsto power, became "Mongolia's Stalin"; his successor, Yumjaagiin Tsedenbal (1952-84), became "Mongolia'sBrezhnev" for his stultifyingeffect on the country. Followingthe Sino-Sovietsplit, the USSR tooka moreactive role in the developmentof Mongoliaas a bufferstate, and stationedits troops through- outMongolian territory. Traditional animosity toward the Chinese was exac- erbated,and in 1980 Chineseresidents were expelled. The economybecame increasinglyintegrated into that of theUSSR, and by the 1980s,nearly 95% of Mongolia'strade was withthe Soviet Union and mostof therest with its allies on the Council on MutualEconomic Assistance (CMEA).4 Signs of changein the USSR led the MPRP in 1984 to replace Tsedenbalwith a youngerleader, Jambyn Batmonh, a successionundoubtedly undertaken with approvalfrom Moscow. Behindthe scenes,however, two groupsstruggled forpower within the party.5 Cautious calls forreform began to appearas the economydeteriorated further, and in 1988 a programof "renewal"was initi- ated,paralleling Gorbachev's policies of glasnost and perestroika. Following theRussian example, the initial objective of Mongolia'sreform process was to revitalizethe socialist economy rather than replace it. Governmentalauthority throughout the communist period resided theoreti- callyin theGreat People's Hural,controlled by itsseven-member Presidium, and in the Council of Ministers.In fact,the MPRP monopolizedpower. Politicalcompetition and dissentwere not tolerated,and the MPRP estab- lisheda networkof controlover the media, the economy, and all aspectsof 3. D. Dashpurevand S. K. Soni, Reignof Terrorin Mongolia,1920-1990 (Absecon High- lands,N.J.: InternationalBook Company,1992), pp. 44-45. 4. CevdetDenizer and Alan Gelb,"Privatization in Mongolia,"in ChangingPolitical Econo- mies,Vedat Millor, ed. (Boulder,Colo.: LynneReinner, 1994), p. 68. 5. Dashpurevand Soni,Reign of Terror,p. 79. This content downloaded from 128.135.12.127 on Fri, 25 Apr 2014 14:01:57 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 462 ASIANSURVEY, VOL. XXXV,NO. 5, MAY 1995 publiclife. The countrywas dividedinto 18 provincesreflecting traditional administrativedivisions, and thesewere subdivided into counties, each with its own communistparty cell. The politicalsystem of theMPR duringthis periodhas been describedas "totalitarianin intent,but less so in factand effectiveness."6The relativelyloose systemof controlreflected the vastly dispersedand self-sufficientnomadic society in whichgovernment provides fewof the people's basic needs. Despitethe collectivization of herding in the 1950s,the nomadic lifestyle of herdsmencontinued and familieslived as in- dividualunits in theirtraditional pastures. There was littlethreat of grass- rootspolitical organization against communist rule, and thereforelittle need forrepression in thecountryside. The samecould not be said forurban areas, especiallyfor intellectuals, who experiencedtight control and repression.7 One of thepoorest nations in thecommunist bloc, Mongolia received