Normal racism

Hi all

If I have still followers (I know it is more easy when you publish every day than once every 2 weeks. I have 3 more weeks I will try to publish at least 6 posts), let me tell you about a bad side of Mongolia.

Before beginning, let me precise that I have not been victim of any of what I am going to tell (probably because I live between a police station, and parliament house watched like a military base), but this is all true stories lived by friend a little bit out of the city center.

Two-three points, to start. Mongolian is a very proud people. This mostly comes from Gengis Khan Conquests in the 14^th century, but not only. China had built the great wall to protect against Mongols, so they definitely are good warriors. 

This people has been humiliated during the Chinese then the Russian era, and is building its new identity around its glorious past. Gengin Khaan is quoted twice in every presidential speech, the brand used everywhere, they built a 80 meters high statue of him only 10 years ago. Opposite to, for example Napoleon in France, nobody ever came to damage his image.

The second point is more a misunderstanding. Yes Mongolia had the world highest growth in 2011, yes there is promising future, but as I mentioned earlier, everyone cannot yet feel it, principally because most of this growth is investment. However the government likes to recall these numbers as a proof of its competence. This push some people to do the following short-track “If there is more wealth, and I don’t have it, then foreigners must have taken it”.

It is true that usually foreigners have a higher life-trend that most locals (of course the local Louis-Vuitton is not for them, but this is behind the scene), but this is mostly a bias due to the fact that if they had to live like a poor Mongolian, most of them would leave the country.

The last one is about alcohol. I can’t remember if I already mentioned it, but some Mongolian drink a lot, and start early in the day. This of course helps to display violent behavior.

While a part of the society is foreign-educated, and understand that foreign help is necessary to develop Mongolia’s potential, there is a counter-trend close from neo-Nazism.

The principal targets are Chinese. Accused of all Mongolian’s problems, they are really hatred. This is partly historical reasons, but when China is your principal market, and your principal source of incomes, this is a problem. Chinese tourists are scared, and only third-tier Chinese companies invest in Mongolia, the better one tries to find more welcoming places to invest. There is a big fear that Chinese could conquer the economy that leads politicians to slow down the development (rather not growing than growing in Chinese hands).

The other target are foreigners in the street, and, more scary, Mongolians who speak English (as “traitor”). At night foreigners are regularly beaten up in the street. Mongolian girls walking with a foreign guy would be insulted (also all girls getting in or out of a hotel). Also speaking English in the street for a Mongolian means an acceptation of “foreign rule” and can give him a bad time.

So let’s undermine that. No risk for tourists, this will more happen in popular areas that tourists will not visit. Also this is mostly the fact of drunk guys. So if you can spot and avoid them, you are safe.

However, this is certainly symptomatic of a people which is living a kind of identity crisis, and which has not live a drama to understand what these kind of behavior can lead to. This is not specific of Mongolia, this has happened before in other developing countries (Korea for example) but disappeared when a wealth threshold was passed.

Let's hope it will happen soon here!