March 14, 2008

Your Excellency Mr. President,

From faraway America, I respectfully direct this letter to you as the head of the Government of Mongolia, to urge you to consider every possible means of ending China’s callous and unlawful deprivation of the rights and freedom of Mr. Jiranbayariin Soyolt, a citizen of Mongolia.

For more than 2 months now, without any criminal charges being publicly announced, Jiranbayariin Soyolt has been detained by the Chinese authorities following his arrest at the Beijing Airport on January 6, 2008. This extremely callous act on the part of the Chinese Government is a blatant violation of the rights and freedom of a Mongolian citizen, Mr. Jaranbayariin Soyolt, as guaranteed by Article 16 of the Mongolian Constitution.

Despite diplomatic notes requesting information about Jaranbayariin Soyolt, the Chinese Government has refused to provide any response. Furthermore, the Chinese authorities have not given any official explanation regarding Soyolt’s arrest, his whereabouts, ongoing investigation or any criminal allegations to his family.

The Chinese Government’s willful act of arresting and holding under indefinite detention a Mongolian citizen without any legal evidence for such a long period not only is a serious violation of a Mongolian citizen’s inalienable Constitutional rights and freedom but also challenges the independence, sovereignty and national security of Mongolia.

Mongolia and China are equal and full members of the United Nations. According to Chapters II and IV of the United Nations Charter, all member states of the United Nations shall implement all articles and shall be equally responsible for protecting and respecting human rights and freedoms. Thus, China is seriously violating not only the United Nations “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” but also the United Nations’ “Covenant on Civil and Political Rights”, one of the major pacts for individual rights and freedom, to which China has been a signatory since 1998. 

Given that a citizen of Mongolia has been arbitrarily arrested and detained in a foreign country, the Government of Mongolia has sofar neither taken up and evaluated the issue nor taken any decisive measures to free its citizen, but rather has taken a passive wait-and-see position which is an apparent violation of Article 19 of the Constitution of Mongolia which clearly states that “on behalf of its citizen, the Sovereign State of Mongolia shall provide full protection of human rights and freedom for its citizens, shall fight against any act in violation of its citizens’ rights and freedom, shall take the responsibility to restore the rights that have been violated.”

Similar to so many other thousands of Mongolians, I am an ordinary Mongol. I am a citizen of Mongolia. In fact, I am writing this letter to you because my 16 year career in the Mongolian legal system as a Supreme Court judge, my work and my personal experience, my knowledge gained through my studies and research of law in the United States, my civic responsibility and life experiences in the United States, cradle of democracy, and my circumstances and environment in which I live force me to fight for justice and the freedom and rights of our brother, Jiranbayariin Soyolt.

It is time for us to say goodbye to the old fashion ideology of prioritizing the state and party interests over citizens’ rights and freedom that are guaranteed by the Constitution of Mongolia; it is time to quickly adapt to new ideas and respect and strengthen internationally accepted democratic norms to ensure that the freedom and rights of every single Mongolian are respected and protected in all countries under these norms. The struggle for the release of Jaranbariin Soyolt who has been arbitrarily arrested and detained in a foreign country should be regarded as the first step for the Government of Mongolia and every single Mongolian to fight for this cause. We should not expect protection from anyone else of our rights and freedom as Mongolians if we Mongolians ourselves do not respect and protect our own fellow Mongolians’ rights and freedom in the first place.

I consider this as a difficult test for our Mongolians and the Mongol nation that has already successfully walked the path of democracy for 16 years. Because, first of all, it is time for the country of Mongolia to prove herself not only at home but also in the international arena as a democratic nation whose government carries the responsibility and capacity to respect and protect her citizens’ rights and freedom both at home and abroad. Second, it is also time for the Government of Mongolia to show its determination to protect its citizens’ rights and freedom by implementing a clear-cut policy of fighting against any such callous and arrogant act, no matter where and when, as violating the rights and freedom of Mongolian citizens as well as those internationally recognized rights and freedom. Third, the actions taken by the Government of Mongolia to protect the rights and freedom of its citizen Jiranbayariin Soyolt will not only be an effort to protect and promote the rights and freedom of an individual but also its strong commitment to promoting the principle of universal human rights, regardless of an individual’s race, color, sex, nationality, religious belief and cultural identity, in its domestic matters and foreign relations as well as to enforce respect for this principle to other countries in its foreign policies. Fourth, this should be a perfect start for the Government of Mongolia to recognize and re-consider the new era of globalization in which thousands of Mongolian citizens live and work in foreign countries where they still need the protection of their government, as well as a starting point to translate this principle into action.

Therefore, as a citizen of Mongolia, I strongly urge the Government of Mongolia to immediately take all necessary actions to free its citizen Jiranbayariin Soyolt in accordance with the Constitution of Mongolia and the international conventions to which it is bound to.

Gombosuren Ganzorig

gganzorig@gmail.com

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Mr. Ganzorig is CEO and the lead consultant of Ganzorig Consulting, Inc. with extensive experience in court proceedings in Mongolia and Virginia. He served for 8 years as a justice at the Supreme Court of Mongolia of his 16 years distinguished service for the judiciary. Mr. Ganzorig received his Jurist Doctor Degree from the Kubani State University, Law School, Krasnodar, Russian Federation and Master in Law from American University Washington College of Law. Currently, he is doing his doctoral study at the same University. He is not licensed by the Supreme Court of Virginia. Mr. Ganzorig is an adjunct professor of Texas Wesleyan University Law School.

On April 19, 2005 Hon. Bagabandi Natsag, the President of Mongolia honored Mr. Ganzorig by “North Star” medal for his “continuous outstanding service for the judiciary of Mongolia.” Ganzorig Consulting, Inc has a number of well educated professional associates who can provide quality court interpretation services.

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