Walk out by protesting Democratic Party prevents Mongolian parliament from being inaugurated
Wednesday, 23 July 2008
Mongolia’s
opposition Democratic Party (DP) walked out of today’s session of
Parliament to prevent members from being sworn in and a new government
being formed. Claiming the June elections were fraudulent, the walk out
by the 25 Democratic members of Parliament prevented the session from
having a required quorum of 56 members.
"This
parliament, which was elected by unfair election and legalizing
injustice, cannot work for the sake of Mongolia. Therefore, we are
pulling out of this new parliament," DP chairman Tsakhilganiin
Elbegdorj announced. Earlier he implied stepping down if the protests
against the alleged electionfraud were not successful.
The
Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (PRP) controls 39 seats and two
other seats have been awarded to a smaller party and an independent
candidate.
Rioting followed the June 31 elections, leaving five people dead and 300 injured.
During
opening ceremonies, President Nambaryn Enkhbayar, himself a former MPRP
member, sought to prevent a disruption of Parliament.
"As president, I don't consider that the 2008 parliamentary election
was unfair," he told the assembly. International observers confirmed
that in broad lines the elections were conducted according the rules.
People on Ulaanbaatar's street seem to be divided between those tired
of MPRP's continuing hold of power and those annoyed with the DP
reluctance to admit defeat. Meanwhile the international business and
mining community face fears of more delays in some of the crucial
governtment regulations and agreements.
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News 
Mongolia’s
opposition Democratic Party (DP) walked out of today’s session of
Parliament to prevent members from being sworn in and a new government
being formed. Claiming the June elections were fraudulent, the walk out
by the 25 Democratic members of Parliament prevented the session from
having a required quorum of 56 members. 
Comments (1)
