The prestigious Cannes Film Festival, which selects the best of the best films, documentaries, and all other genres of films around the world, is taking place at the moment in the city of Cannes in France. In the meantime, Mongolian filmmakers selected their best of the best here last Thursday at the “Academy Awards 2013,” the annual Mongolian film festival.
The Academy Awards is the largest film festival in Mongolia and it was organized by the Mongolian National Movie Academy for the third year. This year’s event took place at the National Academic Drama Theatre on May 16.
“Aravt” (Ten Soldiers of Chinggis Khaan), a historical film by Mongol Film Group in cooperation with Nuudel Soyol Company of Inner Mongolia, won in five nominations; best directing, best actress in a supporting role, best cinematography, best art direction, and best original score. This is the most number of awards for any film and “Aravt” was awarded with the Grand Prix’s “The Best of the Best” award.
Director of the “Aravt” film D.Zolbayar stated, “I am very glad we are reaping the harvest of our three years of hard work. We are so encouraged to do more by these awards. Mongolian films proved to have improved a lot. The competitors were very strong.”
The “Duulen Nis” (Fly) film by Doz Entertainment took the second most number of awards; best actress, best visual effects, best make-up, and best film editing.
Winner of the best actress nomination A.Mungunzul is the wife of Director Sh.Dorjsuren of DOZ Entertainment. She is the star of “Duulen Nis.”
A.Mungunzul mentioned in her gratitude speech, “Thank you to my loving husband and my best coworker for giving me such confidence. I will also be your support all the time.”
The film, “Anu Khatan” (Queen Anu), that depicts the life of Queen Anu who is the wife of Galdan Boshughtu Khan of Dzungaria during 17th century Mongolia, took the awards for best screenplay, best actor in a supporting role, and best producer.
The Best Actor award went to Ts.Tumurbaatar who starred in the film “UlaanDurvuljin” (Red Square), a psychological drama. He said, “It was the first time I played in this genre of film. Since it was a psychological film, my state of mind was deeply affected by it. I felt very distressed even a month after the shooting of the film had been finished.”
Several international artists also took part in the festival. For instance, cameraman Andre Arnone, make-up artist Jeong Seum Kim, actress Dan In Hae from the “Duulen Nis” film, cameraman of Big Fish Production Haydon Lane, sound editor Michael Kao, as well as actors Oleg Peletin of Russia and B.Baasanjav participated in and added an international mix to the festival.
Michael Kao won the Best Sound Editing award.
Respected representatives of the Mongolian film industry including State Honored director B.Baljinnyam, writer State Laureate S.Purev, and renowned art director T.Goosh worked as judges this year.
Director of “Yeronhiilugchyn Tuslah” (The President’s Assistant) M.Enkhdalai was awarded the “Director with a Bright Future” award by the French Embassy in Mongolia.

The following are the award winners in their respective films and nominations:
“Aravt”
Best Director: D.Zolbayar
Best Supporting Actress: D.Gantsetseg
Best Cinematography: G.Battulga
Best Art Direction: J.Tsog
Best Music (Original Score): B.Chinbat
“Duulen Nis”
Best Actress: A.Mungunzul
Best Visual Effects: Sh.Tansag
Best Make-Up: Delger, Jeong Seum Kim
Best Film Editing: B.Baatar
“AnuKhatan”
Best Screenplay: B.Togtokhbayar
Best Supporting Actor: S.Ariunbyamba
Best Producer: D.Boldkhuyag
Other Awards and Films
Best Actor: Ts.Tumurbaatar, “Ulaan Durvuljin”
Best Sound Editing: Michael Kao, Big Fish
Best Film Soundtrack: “Niciton” band, “Durlalyn Gemt Hereg” (Love Crime)
Best Documentary Film: Tell Me My Name, directed by E.Khurelkhuu
Best Debut Film: Midnight Talk, directed by O.Batzorig
Best Short Film: “19”-Part 2, directed by I.Nyamgavaa

The engine of economy is fueled by money. To be more specific, it is the free flow of money that feeds the economy. However, due to a missing fuel tank, our economy has constantly been running out of fuel and failing to operate normally.
Due its hiking price, we have been having shortages of money for years, which means not having enough fuel for the economy. Annual interest rates of loans provided by our commercial banks are not going below 24 percent.
The two fuel tanks of economy are capital and money markets. Combined, they are called ‘financial market’. The capital market tank provides fuel for long term use while the money market tank offers money to be used only in short term (up to a year). Mongolia only has one of the two tanks – the money market. That is why our economy limps and is forced to be supported by a cane. The cane, in our case, is the foreign loans we acquire to contribute to the public budget.
In a healthy economy, surplus capital in one part is collected, split into packages and lent with certain conditions to the other part that needs the money. This intermediary role is fulfilled by the financial market.
Why cannot we create and utilize the tank that provides Mongolia with long-term capital? How can we develop the financial market and inject long-term capital into our economy?

The part where there is a lack of capital

Mongolia needs an enormous amount of capital for its development. Almost 50-60 billion USD is required to transform ger districts in Ulaanbaatar into apartment blocks, construct water pipelines allowing the supply of running cold and hot water, supply electricity, improve city lighting and connect the new buildings that are being constructed to the existing infrastructure.
The past years showed us that our banks cannot fund long-term investments because their source is short-term. Furthermore, those banks provide loans only when there is enough collateral. It makes it impossible for the hundreds of thousands of people who do not own enough property for loan collateral to start a new business. Therefore, those people are now supporting their livelihood by their daily income from buying and selling common goods only.
For example, the airlines industry cannot develop if there are no planes. The Mongolian Airlines (MIAT) has recently welcomed a brand new plane, which is the first one in its history. They made it happen by borrowing money that had been raised by selling the bonds issued by the Development Bank. This move has added more loan pressure on the MIAT, especially during this time where the so-called national company MIAT is not privatized and those who claim to represent the public properties have been stealing quite a lot from this company that it has almost led to bankruptcy.
If MIAT had been a shareholding company, the representatives of the true shareholders in its Board of Representatives would have never allowed anyone to have an opportunity to steal. On the contrary, they would have raised the money for the new plane from international capital markets instead of acquiring a loan.
Since the government is reliable and responsible for the payback of large projects that need long-term capital such as road and power plant, a public-private partnership (PPP) can be carried out and the first round funding can be provided by investment funds.
Mongolian private companies need to attract investment in order to expand their businesses. Also, there are many transparent, socially responsible and professionally managed companies that wish to raise money for funding from the domestic capital market.

The part where there is a surplus of capital

The biggest accumulation of capital in our society is social insurance and pension funds that altogether deduct almost 10 percent of everyone’s salary. Certain parts of these funds are used for long-term investments to develop infrastructure.
However, we can no longer see any report that tells us how much capital the Mongolian pension fund has and where it is today. Mongolians now do not know how much money they have in their accounts. A total of 800 billion MNT is collected by the pension fund a year, but they spend it all on the provision of pension. Therefore, capital accumulation is currently out of the question.
Many international experiences show that a large amount of capital can be accumulated and grown further through the capital market by establishing private pension funds and employers raising a good volume of capital in accordance with the capital contributed by their employees. Despite not being a legal entity, XacBank, Golomt Bank and Wagner Asia Company are running a pension accumulation account in Mongolia.
Although the Government of Mongolia established more than 30 specialized funds at its ministries and they claim that the total accumulated capital has been put into a special account of the state fund, no reports on revenue and expenditure are available to the public.
It is said that the most savings in commercial banks are owned by only a handful of people. If this kind of money has more income than commercial bank rates, it goes to the capital market very quickly.

Connecting bridge

There is a surplus of capital on one side of the river and a lack of capital on the other side. However, the financial soft infrastructure that can connect the two has not been formed in Mongolia yet. Therefore, our financial market development is not progressing from its initial stage.
Many governments have believed in managing commercial banks through the central bank, developing the money market and implementing the budget policy in good alignment with them. However, this attempt of theirs to go on the heavy gear is not helping the loan rates to be reduced or the shortage of money to cease.
Is the government not aware of the existence of a great amount of capital if utilized correctly? Or, are they not paying enough attention to it? We need to collect this capital, reallocate into the parts of economy that need it, establish the necessary institutions, create the relevant soft infrastructure and, particularly, pass the new securities law.
Mongolian laws are passed in order to control, restrict or wipe out anyone who came up with an initiative rather than focusing on developing specific industries or sectors. The new securities serves a similar purpose. The investment fund law must be passed along with the securities law.
Translated by B.AMAR

Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag made a statement regarding the spending of the 1.5 billion USD Government Bond or Chinggis Bond during the Plenary Session meeting of the Parliament held last Friday.

In accordance with the decision of the Government and the Policy Council of the Chinggis Bond, it was decided that 50 million USD will be spent on building a power plant with a capacity of 450 megawatts at the Tavantolgoi coal mine. It is forecasted that the power plant will be operational in 2017.

It was also decided that 200 million USD from the Chinggis Bond will be spent on the implementation of Project “Street,” which was developed with the aim to abolish traffic congestion in the capital, to reduce ground and air pollution in Ulaanbaatar, and to provide the capital city residents with a much more comfortable way of life. “Street” has three sub-projects, namely, “City Center,” “Re-Planning of Ger Districts,” and “Highways.”

Within the framework of the project, a total of 33 crossings in the city center will be renovated, and new streets will be created, stressed Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag. It was estimated that a total length of 500 kilometers of roads and pavements should be constructed in order to improve the ger district streets and road network of Ulaanbaatar.

In addition, a 65-kilometer highway is planned to be built along the Tuul and Selbe Rivers, which is predicted to reduce traffic congestion by 25 to 30 percent.

The Government of Innovation and Reform promised in its action policy of 2012 to 2016 to connect the centers of provinces with Ulaanbaatar by paved roads. This year Dornod, Dornogobi, Dundgobi, Umnugobi, Bayankhongor, and Khuvsgul Provinces are to be connected with Ulaanbaatar with paved roads at a cost of 570 billion MNT. This amount represents the financing the construction of these 1,800-kilometer long roads, and such an investment will come from the Chinggis Bond, stated Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag during his statement.

On another note, some 68.8 million USD will be allocated to the cashmere sector, and 27.7 million MNT will be spent in increasing the consumption of milk and dairy products by building 15 international standard farms near Ulaanbaatar.  Moreover, some 200 billion MNT is planned to be issued for the construction of engineering infrastructure and pipeline networks of apartment towns to be built in the capital, according to Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag.

The Civil Will-Green Party (CWGP) and Mongolian National Democratic Party (MNDP) have officially claimed that the parties will support the Democratic Party’s (DP) presidential candidate, Ts.Elbegdorj. Correspondingly, the chairpersons of the CWGP, MNDP, and DP signed a cooperation agreement at the State Palace.

During the agreement-signing ceremony, DP Chairman and Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag stated, “This is a historic event. We express our gratefulness to both the CWGP and MNDP for supporting our presidential candidate.”

The CWGP also supported the DP in the previous presidential election of 2009.  They decided to continue doing this as the incumbent President Ts.Elbegdorj can still work to decrease corruption, to establish justice, and to preserve the natural environment, stressed the chairwoman of the CWGP, S.Oyun.

Meanwhile, the Mongolian Green Party, the Freedom Implementing Party, and the United Party of Patriots have expressed their position to support the candidate for the upcoming Presidential Election from the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP), B.Bat-Erdene. The concerned parties have also signed a cooperation agreement accordingly.

By signing the Memorandum of Understanding with the MPP, the aforementioned political parties will support the action policy of candidate B.Bat-Erdene and will participate in his election campaign.

The Presidential Election will be carried out nationwide on June 26 and Mongolians will elect the future President of Mongolia from among Ts.Elbegdorj of the DP, B.Bat-Erdene of the MPP, and N.Udval of the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party who is the first ever female to run for president in the country.

Speaker (Marshal) of the Polish Senate Bogdan Borusewicz arrived here on Monday to conduct a four-day official visit at the invitation Speaker of the Parliament Z.Enkhbold.

The Head of the Mongolia-Poland inter-parliamentary group in the State Great Khural (the Parliament of Mongolia), Member of the Parliament (MP) L.Erdenechimeg; the Secretary-General of the Office of the Parliament, B.Boldbaatar; the Head of the Foreign Relations Department of Parliamentary Office; and other officials greeted Marshal Borusewicz at Chinggis Khan International Airport.

Later during the day, the Polish delegates led by Marshal Borusewicz were welcomed by Speaker Z.Enkhbold at the Central Square. After paying their respects to the Chinggis Khaan monument, the counterparts Marshal Borusewicz and Speaker Z.Enkhbold held bilateral talks at the State Palace.

Z.Enkhbold raises the issue of establishing Polish Embassy here

During official bilateral talks, Speaker (Marshal) of the Polish Senate Bogdan Borusewicz noted that Mongolia has developed and changed enormously since his visit to Mongolia in 1999. He then stressed that Poland wants to expand the mutual relationship between the two countries. Moreover, Poland will pay specific attention to accelerating the foreign relations of the European Union (EU). It will particularly focus on the deepening the relationship between Mongolia and the EU, emphasized Marshal Borusewicz.

Accordingly, the two sides discussed the issue of establishing a Polish Embassy in Mongolia which had already been raised during President Ts.Elbegdorj’s visit to Poland, conducted in January 2013. “The establishment of a Polish Embassy in Ulaanbaatar will be a very significant move in strengthening Polish-Mongolian cooperation and mutual business relations, mentioned Speaker Z.Enkhbold.

Speaker Z.Enkhbold also stated that Mongolia and Poland should continue cooperating in the area of defense and invited the representatives of the Polish defense force to attend the annual event held in Mongolia, Khaan Quest, where there is training for international peacekeeping operations. He then expressed Mongolia’s interest to learn from Poland’s experience in improving its armed forces in only a short period of time by adapting to NATO standards, as well as to draw up an agreement between Mongolia and Poland about keeping confidential information regarding military and technical cooperation activities.

Moreover, Speaker Z.Enkhbold asked Poland to support Mongolian exports and spur investments from Poland to Mongolia as trade and economic cooperation plays an important role in deepening the mutual relationship of the two countries. He also asked Poland to pay closer attention in implementing its economic cooperation agreement with Mongolia, which was signed during President Ts.Elbegdorj’s visit there.

Mongolia is interested in launching a relevant discussion on a mutual agreement and general documents on cooperation in receiving a loan.  In compliance with an order from the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development, the country is to receive a loan for the development of its exports from the government of Poland.

Finally, Speaker Z.Enkhbold talked about the necessity to intensify the current undergoing cooperation of both countries in the area of mining, such as in the geological research work which is being carried out in “Khasagt” field.

Marshal Borusewicz meets with President Ts.Elbegdorj

President Ts.Elbegdorj received Speaker (Marshal) of the Polish Senate Bogdan Borusewicz.

In the beginning of the meeting, President Ts.Eldegdorj expressed his hope that the official visit of Marshal Borusewicz will have great outcomes in strengthening the relations between Mongolia and Poland.

”Mongolia is developing democracy successfully. Poland sent its high-ranking state delegates to show that we are attaching great importance to the Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies, hosted by Mongolia. The economy of Mongolia is growing fast. We have many things to learn from Mongolia. The relationship between Mongolia and Poland is deepening. Poland is interested in expanding its economic relations with Mongolia, as well as in improving the cooperation in the field of defense,” noted Senate Borusewicz during his turn to speak.

In the end, President Ts.Elbegdorj conveyed his greetings to the President of Poland.

The General Election Commission (GEC) announced that it has registered Democratic Party’s Ts.Elbegdorj, Mongolian People’s Party’s B.Bat-Erdene, and Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party’s N.Udval, as the candidates for the upcoming Presidential Election n June 26. This was after verifying that the documents submitted by the respective political parties in relation with their nominees for the Presidential Election are truthful, complete, and completed in compliance with the law.

The political parties delivered to the GEC the documents related to their particular presidential candidates, such as the official decision note of the party about nominating its standard bearer, the action policy of the candidate, party rules and internal regulations regarding the nomination, as well as the candidate’s handwritten permission that he or she will run in the election, autobiography, declaration statement of assets and income, birth certificate, parents’ ID cards.  Other documents also include the statements about a candidate from relevant organizations such as the medical test result which shows his or her health condition, police statement which proves that the candidate did not commit any crimes, as well as relevant statements from banks, departments of taxation, and other legal entities as demanded by the GEC.

The mandate to run in the Presidential Election will be handed to each of the candidates today which means that the election campaign will officially begin on May 22. Hence, according to the law, once the three candidates receive such a mandate, it is forbidden for a political party to withdraw its nominee and it is not allowed for a candidate to withdraw his or her name by his or her own free will.

The GEC has also announced a the total of 31 information and technology teams, composed of 146 specialists, will work at the electoral district committees during the Presidential Election. 

Furthermore, the spokesperson of the GEC stated that 30 to 300 short-term and long-term observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) will observe Mongolia’s Presidential Election.

The OSCE ODIHR last opened an election observation mission to monitor the June 26 Presidential Election in Mongolia.

ODIHR was invited by the government of Mongolia to observe the Presidential Election, in line with the country’s commitments as an OSCE-participating state since the end of 2012. This is the first ODIHR election observation mission deployed to Mongolia.

According to the official website with the OSCE announcement, in the course of its observation, the mission will meet with representatives from relevant authorities, political parties, their candidates, as well as representatives from civil society, the media, and the international community. On Election Day, observers will monitor the opening of polling stations, voting, the counting of ballots, and the tabulation of results at all levels.

Chairman of the General Election Commission (GEC) Ch.Sodnomtseren spoke to a local newspaper on Wednesday regarding the registration work of the candidates in the upcoming Presidential Election within the framework of the implementation of the Law on the Election of the President of Mongolia.

-The names of the candidates for the upcoming Presidential Election on June 26 have been announced to public. Did the candidates start submitting their required documents to the General Election Commission?

-The political parties who have seats in the Parliament obtain the right to promote a candidate in the Presidential Election among the party members. According to the Constitution, it is stated that a political party who has seats in the Parliament can rightfully nominate one candidate for the Presidential Election independently or by joining other political parties.

The nomination of a candidate to the Presidential Election was conducted last week and a total of three candidates were nominated from political parties who operate in the Parliament accordingly.

Currently, the GEC has received the results of the medical test of these three candidates. According to their medical examinations, the candidates from Democratic Party Ts.Elbegdorj, from the Mongolian People’s Party B.Bat-Erdene, and from the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party N.Udval are healthy and have no health problems.

The political parties should submit to the GEC the relevant materials of their presidential candidates within the stated dates, which are from May 13 to 17.

-What kind of materials should be submitted to the GEC?

The Law on the Presidential Election of Mongolia clearly states that the political parties, which nominated a candidate, should come up with and submit documents such as the official decision note of the party about promoting its candidate, the action policy of candidate, party rules and internal regulations regarding the nomination, etc. Moreover, the candidate’s handwritten permission that he or she will run in the election, autobiography, declaration statement of assets and income, birth certificate, ID cards of his or her parents, etc. should be delivered to the GEC. In addition, the statements about a candidate from relevant organizations such as the medical test result which will show his/her health condition, police statement which will prove that the candidate did not commit any crimes, and other relevant statements from banks, departments of taxation, as well as other legal entities are demanded by the GEC.

The delivered materials will be examined by the GEC in accordance with the law. The examination process will be completed in three processes. Firstly, the GEC will check whether the materials from the political party is complete and accurate, then it will be examined whether the delivered documents were produced in compliance with the law. Moreover, the GEC will investigate whether the nomination process was conducted lawfully.

If the submitted materials of the candidate meet the abovementioned demands, the GEC will make a decision within three days through its convention whether to register a nominee from a political party as an official candidate to the Presidential Election.

Once the GEC makes a decision, the candidate will receive the mandate to run in the Presidential Election 35 days prior to Election Day, which officially allows the launch of the election campaign. Hence, the election campaign will officially begin on May 22.

The candidate has the right to introduce his or her action policy through the press and media and to state his or her mind freely.

-Is it possible for a candidate to withdraw his or her name from the election?

-The law clearly states that once a candidate receives the mandate to run in the Presidential Election, it is forbidden for a political party to withdraw a candidate and it is not allowed for a candidate to withdraw his or her name by his or her own free will.

-Does it mean that it is not possible to re-nominate another candidate without withdrawing the previous one?

-There is provision in the law that allows re-nominating another candidate in two cases. Firstly, if a candidate passes away and, secondly, if a candidate gets a jail sentence by a court decision, another candidate is allowed to run in the Presidential Election. But the GEC should be informed about the decision to re-nominate another candidate within 30 days prior to Election Day.

-Are there any grounds not to register a candidate?

-The grounds to refuse to register a candidate are stated in the law. For example, in cases when the nomination wasn’t conducted within the stated period; or when the materials submitted to the GEC are not accurate, incomplete, or falsely made up; the GEC has the right to refuse to register a nominee, who is promoted by a political party, as a candidate in the Presidential Election.

-What about the budget and expenses for the Presidential Election?

-It is legal to spend for a candidate’s safety and security. The budget for this was issued from the state budget.

Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag conducted an online discussion with the ambassadors and heads of diplomatic embassies and consulates from Mongolia to foreign countries. The online discussion with chiefs of Mongolian missions overseas is being hosted for the first time, where 39 of them connected online and exchanged important information.

During the online meeting, the Prime Minister introduced to the participants his office’s current achievements such as holding fruitful bilateral talks during high-level visits to several countries, successfully conducting the recent Ministerial Meeting of the Community of Democracies which enhanced Mongolia’s reputation in the world, and renewing the legal management which supports foreign investment.

The online discussion was also attended by the delegation of cashmere manufacturers and designers. The manufacturers deem that Mongolia, which has a stock of raw materials to produce eight to 10 million cashmere blouses annually, has an opportunity to gain profits if it will export them at  a price of 51 USD each.

In order to implement this, it is important to open a showroom called “Made in Mongolia” at Mongolian embassies and consulates worldwide and to recommend vested chain stores to cooperate with the government. Meanwhile, the designers stated that it is possible to sell cashmere products for as high as 500 USD. To do so, designing, advertising, and promoting play important roles, designer representatives stressed out.

Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag then stated that the efforts of diplomatic missions will be evaluated based on their performances and outcomes such as the results of their role in protecting the interests of Mongolians who reside overseas, as well as the economic growth of and circulation of goods and services between the two countries as a consequence of increasing the export of Mongolia’s products.

The online discussions with the heads of diplomatic missions will be conducted regularly from now on and the delegates of other manufacturing sectors will also be involved in these meetings. “Our purpose to introduce our national brand to the world will be realized in a short time if we will work hard and come up with new initiatives,” said the Prime Minister.