Minister of Justice met with the representatives donor organizations

Mongolia now sees the second wave of legal reform in the legal industry. First legal reforms started ahead in 2002, but failed after a few amendments to criminal and other laws though. Kh.Temujin, Minister of Justice who carries the wave of legal reform met with the representatives donor organizations in Nukht complex on 28th Sep. A new Minister of Justice introduced “Policy reform to carry in legal industry”, new setup of organization, new arrangements and new appointments in Ministry of Justice during the meeting and discussions. Minister of Justice Kh.Temujin stated that experts began searching coincidence law, legislation defect to make human right monitoring to every ongoing laws. The first legal reforms in Mongolia supported by US U.S. Agency for International Development and other donor organizations failed because of no ground and not so many trained staffs yet to make such big reforms that time. In Mongolia “everyone is equal before law” is not working to all. Many people criticize that only the riches get benefit the law but ordinary people suffer many years sentence for only nothing. For instance a poor woman who stole 10,000 tugrig to make food for children, a teenager who stole a cell phone get 10 years sentence in prison while officials who sacked millions and billions tugrig from budget would only take advantage of law. Therefore Minister stated that it is time to erase coincidence, to reduce punishment for misdemeanor, first time offense, to diversify sentences and avoid from sentence in any way.

Officials agree that university and institute of law cannot provide students with professional education despite a diploma. And they say that Ministry of Justice should take charge legal education from Ministry of Education and follow on a new stage. Hanns Seidel Foundation which has worked and launched many program, projects for justice reform in Mongolia since 1993, Asian Development bank, The German Society for International Cooperation, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, International Finance Corporation, Japan International Cooperation Agency JICA, Millennium Challenge Corporation, Open Society Foundations, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, U.S. Agency for International Development, The World Bank took part in the meeting, discussion at Nukht complex.