Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center


Congressman Jim McGovern Introduces House Version of Southern Mongolian Human Rights Policy Act

	... On December 19, 2024, Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA) introduced H.R. 10537, the House version of the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Policy Act. This legislation mirrors the bill introduced earlier in the Senate by Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK). The bill seeks to address significant human rights abuses and safeguard the cultural and linguistic rights of Southern Mongolians within China. “I am grateful for the partnership of Senator Jeff Merkley in bringing this legislation forward to make clear that America supports the aspirations of Southern Mongolians and opposes the oppressive policies being implemented by the People’s Republic of China,” Congressman McGovern said earlier, welcoming the Senate’s introduction of the bill and expressing his readiness to work with Senator Merkley to advance the legislation. “The Southern Mongolian Human Rights Policy Act reaffirms America’s commitment to fundamental values of human rights and dignity. It signals that the United States stands with the Southern Mongolian people in their fight to preserve their cultural and linguistic heritage, and it sends a clear message that human rights must be respected everywhere,” Congressman McGovern emphasized, reaffirming the ....
<details>...
Southern Mongolian young activist Temulun Togochog testifies before the US Congressional Executive Commission on China (CECC)

	... I have never met my aunts, uncles, cousins, or nieces and nephews. I have never celebrated Tsagaan Sar, the Traditional Mongolian New Year, with my relatives or learned many of their customs firsthand. My parents have not returned to Southern Mongolia to attend family weddings or funerals, nor to say their final goodbyes to loved ones. Despite these challenges, my parents have worked tirelessly to preserve our language, culture, and traditions. When I was little, they sought out Mongolian babysitters to help teach me and my sister our mother tongue. This was no easy task, as there were few Mongolians in New York. Still, I was fortunate to learn some Mongolian from the babysitters they found. As I started school, time at home—and opportunities to learn Mongolian—diminished, even though my parents consistently spoke Mongolian at home. Southern Mongolians use the traditional script written vertically from top to bottom, a script with over 800 years of history. This script was not easy to learn, so my parents arranged for a teacher from independent Mongolia to teach me and my sister the Cyrillic Mongolian script. In the summer of 2018, my father took us to a children’s camp at the Mongol-Tibetan Buddhist Cultural Center ....
<details>...
Enghebatu Togochog's statement at the 17th Session of the United Nations Forum on Minority Issues

	... Thank you, Madam Chair. Mongolians were never a minority in their own land north of the Great Wall. However, this began to change in 1949 when the Chinese regime took control of the region and launched a settler colonial project. Over seven decades of genocide, ethnic cleansing and population transfers, Mongolians have been reduced to an absolute minority in their ancestral homeland. Today, the Chinese government is implementing a new form of genocide—cultural genocide—aimed at the complete eradication of Mongolian language, culture, and identity. Under a newly adopted language policy, the Mongolian language has been completely banned throughout the entire educational system in the region. Textbooks in Mongolian have been replaced with Chinese-language materials, and Mongolian signs, publications, and even extracurricular learning of the language have been prohibited. Public campaigns with slogans like “Speak Chinese and become a civilized person” openly promote Chinese supremacy. Enforcing a mass indoctrination program called the “Firm Inculcation of the Chinese Nationality Common Identity”, the Chinese government is criminalizing Mongolians for expressing their cultural pride, speaking their ....
<details>...
Chinese teacher injures Mongolian student, sparking outrage and boycott by parents

	... On November 20, 2024, a Chinese teacher named Ms. Liang Yuxia violently injured a nine-year-old Mongolian girl in Uushin Banner of the Ordos region in Southern Mongolia (also known as "Inner Mongolia"). According to sources, Ms. Liang struck the student repeatedly for failing to complete her homework on time, ultimately causing significant damage to the girl's ear. In response to the incident, outraged parents have boycotted the school, refusing to send their children back until further action is taken. "My name is Hastsetseg, and I am aware of this incident," a Mongolian parent from Uushin Banner told the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center (SMHRIC) over the phone. "The girl's name is Hairaa. She is in second grade in the same class as my son at the Uushin Banner Experimental Elementary School. Ms. Liang Yuxia, a teacher recently hired by the school, has shown open hostility and abuse toward Mongolian children." "Hairaa is currently hospitalized after being violently beaten by the teacher, which caused a severe rupture to her ear," Ms. Hastsetseg continued. "She also suffered serious bleeding from her mouth." Photos and video footage shared with the SMHRIC show the extent of the injury, with the girl's right ear requiring ....
<details>...