Women are ‘game changers’ in Mongolia’s patriarchal politics

Women candidates are pushing for greater representation in Mongolia’s male-dominated politics, raising their voices for change and inspiring girls to follow in their footsteps.

Mongolians go to the polls in parliamentary elections on Friday, and the ruling Mongolian People’s Party is expected to retain its eight-year majority.

But for the first time in almost a decade, parties are required by law to ensure 30% of their candidates are women in a country where politics is largely dominated by men.

As a result, more women than ever are running this year, in a new voting system that balances proportional lists with district candidates elected directly by the people.

“The era we live in demands a quota,” Dorjzodov Enkhtuya, a 51-year-old former TV presenter who is running for the main opposition Democratic Party in the capital Ulaanbaatar, told AFP.

“There are almost no women in decision-making positions,” she said.

“We’re changing the game”

– Strict patriarchal norms –

In Mongolia, gender inequalities are particularly acute in the vast countryside, where nomadic life is governed by strict patriarchal norms.

But even in rural areas, attitudes are slowly changing.

In 2022, the government appointed Enkhbat Bolormaa as the country’s first female governor of the western province of Khovd.

The decision has sparked national debate – Mongolia’s provincial governors are usually required to attend traditional ceremonies usually reserved for men.

“There have been public discussions about whether a woman can be governor,” Khurelbaatar Baasanjargal, a 42-year-old lawyer and ruling party candidate, told AFP.

“But our first female governor has done everything male governors can do,” she said.

“That was like a different world, especially for people in the countryside.”

– “A dirty game” –

As is the case everywhere, many of the problems affecting urban life disproportionately affect women.

Women running for office campaigned on the platform that, ultimately, women’s issues are Mongolia’s issues.

Children falling ill due to air pollution means that, more often than not, working mothers have to stay at home to care for them.

Terrible city planning means there are fewer places for young people to play.

Stubbornly high inflation makes doing the weekly shop that much harder – and it’s a job that women usually have to do.

But in a quiet suburb of Ulaanbaatar, surrounded by dozens of purple and yellow balloons bearing her party’s colors, 41-year-old candidate Baatarjav Munkhsoyol told AFP that women had to work hard to be heard in politics.

“Elections are a money game and a huge expense – smear campaigns are common,” said Munkhsoyol, a candidate for the minor center-right anti-corruption party HUN.

“It takes a strong will and courage to stand for election if you are a woman,” added the former NGO worker.

Endemic corruption — a problem that analysts and Transparency International say has worsened since 2016 — also affects women, Munkhsoyol said.

“The reason men are more involved in politics is because of gender stereotypes and traditional mindsets,” she said.

“But these people are corrupt,” she said. “Women see politics as a dirty game and prefer to stay away.”

– “Women protect women” –

The country’s institutions have made some progress: the Mongolian government says nearly two-thirds of civil servants are women.

The 30 percent quota is itself an improvement on the status quo ante, with the goal of raising it to 40 percent at the next vote.

Mongolia has long had a polling quota for women and this has been revised several times.

But beyond the realm of politics, violence against women remains a major problem.

The United Nations Development Program said two-thirds of women in Mongolia have experienced some form of physical, sexual, emotional or economic abuse.

“Gender-based violence is one of the main barriers facing women of all ages today,” said Enkhtuya, who wants the quota for female poll candidates to rise from 30 to 50 percent.

“Women will do more to protect women,” she said.

“That’s why it’s time for a change.”

Baasanjargal became prominent in the successful campaign to ban horse racing for children.

She told AFP she met an elderly woman in eastern Dornod province who told her she had long suffered under an abusive husband.

“She told me she was very happy that we were now talking about women’s human rights,” she said.

“She said she could have suffered less if there had been a conversation about giving women human rights.”

But, she said, her trips to the countryside also saw her encourage two 10-year-old girls to dream big and pursue whatever career they wanted.

“I told them women can do all the jobs,” she said.

“They smiled and looked at each other. That’s why I decided to stay in politics, to be an example for other women.”

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