There is a serious crisis brewing in Mongolia. The government has resigned last week, amid a growing citizen discontent with country’s poor economic performance – low incomes, high unemployment, etc. People in Mongolia are also fed up with corruption.
“Dawn has broken in Mongolia. We are getting poorer every day and corrupt officials are getting richer. Now is the time to take action,” a leaflet distributed by the organisers of Monday’s rally read.
Quotes about corruption such as this always strike me as a proof that corruption does not go unnoticed. Citizens can tell when government officials live far in excess of their official salary – driving expensive cars, wearing fine suits, living in large homes, or dining in upscale restaurants. But while people silently link excessive spending on the part of government officials to corruption they do not always have the tools to do anything about it. In some cases, corruption becomes accepted as a norm, and citizens, rather than fighting graft and bribery in government, compete to obtain those government positions which allow them to demand bribes. However, it is not the case everywhere. In some countries, there are civil society groups, such as Confecamaras in Colombia and Center for Liberal Democratic Studies (CLDS) in Serbia, which do a very important and successful work in tackling corruption.
It is uplifting to see citizens standing up to bribery in Mongolia. Not being an expert on the country, I also wonder whether this political crisis has the potential of turning into something more. Comments?
Published Date: January 17, 2006