Mongolia

18 years in 2017 for fraud. In May, the Prosecutor General announced that the evidence against him had been fabricated, and Veaceslav Platon was released the following month pending further investigation and re-trial. However, the review of the 38 cases raised concerns over selective justice, including the lack of clear criteria supporting the choice of cases.

The investigation against officials allegedly responsible for the unlawful detention and forcible return of seven Turkish nationals to Turkey in 2018 was regarded as classified. Following public pressure, however, in September the Prosecutor General revealed that one of the officials had been convicted and fined in July. The court decision was not published officially but leaked to the press.

FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT

In March, Moldovan citizens returning from abroad were obliged to purchase compulsory health insurance within 72 hours of their return. The measure remained in place until the state of emergency was lifted, despite a conclusion in April by the Council for Equality that the measure was discriminatory as it effectively made return conditional on the ability to pay and was applied differently in practice to those returning by air and overland. No information on the implementation of the measure was made public.

MONGOLIA

Mongolia Head of state: Khaltmaa Battulga Head of government: Ukhnaa Khurelsukh

Measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 contributed to an increase in domestic violence and affected children’s rights to education and health. Prior to elections in June, there was a rise in cases of arbitrary detention of individuals speaking out against the government. The authorities failed to investigate most reported cases of torture.

Domestic violence increased in the capital, Ulaanbaatar, as lockdown measures were imposed to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The number of reports increased by more than 50% during the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2019; 90% of the victims were women. Lockdown measures also reduced the options available for support and counselling services.

HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS

In May, the government submitted to parliament a bill on the protection of human rights defenders, which was discussed in December but remained pending. Human rights defenders lacked sufficient legal protection, putting them and their families at risk.

In September, a woman herder-activist and NGO leader was harassed and beaten by managers of a mining company, due to her efforts to protect herders’ land from business encroachment and to prevent environmental degradation. Her case was dismissed after investigation by the municipal police.

ARBITRARY ARRESTS AND DETENTION

Prior to parliamentary elections in June, the government arrested and arbitrarily detained individuals – including lawyers and activists –for expressing their views on the human rights situation and corruption. Many of them were detained for weeks without being charged or brought to court.

TORTURE AND OTHER ILL-TREATMENT

There were credible allegations of torture and other ill-treatment by law enforcement officials but the government showed unwillingness to conduct investigations. Between January and October, 54 cases of torture were reported, but only three of them were investigated and brought to court.

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

In January, an amendment to the Criminal Code which criminalized the dissemination of “false information” came into effect. A