ULAANBAATAAR, December 6. /TASS/. A protest demonstration has resumed in the Mongolian capital on Tuesday. People are gathering in Sukhbaatar Square, in the city’s center, a TASS correspondent reports.
As of now, about 200 people have turned out to protest. They have begun a procession, chanting slogans. The posters they carry call on the country's authorities to bring high-ranking corrupt officials to justice who, the protesters suspect, were responsible for large-scale embezzlement. Some demonstrators are making economic demands. In particular, they are complaining about price hikes and dwindling living standards.
Protests in Ulaanbaatar began on December 4 over an ongoing investigation into the export of coal to China without any oversight from customs. On December 5, protesters tried to storm the government building. The demonstrators demanded that the names of the suspects be disclosed, some of whom the protesters believe to be high-ranking politicians. The authorities have set up a working group for dialogue with the protesters. The government's chief of staff and leader of the ruling Mongolian People's Party, Dashzegve Amarbayasgalan heads the panel of negotiators. The Mongolian Parliament met in an emergency session to consider the possibility of introducing a state of emergency in Ulaanbaatar. When the crowd left the area peacefully, it decided that there was no need for such a measure yet.