Mongolian journalist jailed five years for illegally obtaining state secrets


Mongolian court sentenced a controversial journalist to almost five years in prison for illegally obtaining state secrets — Reuters pic

Saturday, 20 Jul 2024 

ULAANBAATAR, July 20— A Mongolian court sentenced a controversial journalist to almost five years in prison for illegally obtaining state secrets and a host of other crimes, in a case that critics say exposes a deepening crackdown on press freedom.

Naran Unurtsetseg became one of Mongolia’s best-known journalists by exposing abuse in a Buddhist boarding school, violence in the military, and by taking on some of the country’s most powerful people.

Her confrontational broadcasts with her outlet, Zarig, sparked controversy over her tactics but won her legions of fans in a country where corruption is deep-rooted and has sparked civil unrest.

On Friday, Unurtsetseg wrote on Facebook that a court in the capital Ulaanbaatar had sentenced her to four years and nine months of prison time following a closed-door trial.

”This is repression,” she wrote.

A court decision said she was found guilty of illegally obtaining state secrets, tax avoidance, disclosing personal information and defamation.

”This is the first time that Mongolia has punished a journalist since the early 2000s,” said Zagdsuren Borgilmaa, board member of the Confederation of Mongolian Journalists, the country’s main press NGO.

Democratic Mongolia boasts a vibrant media scene, with scores of outlets representing all shades of the political spectrum and confrontational debate commonplace.

But against a recent backdrop of what critics say is declining rule of law, it has plummeted in press freedom rankings.

Reporters Without Borders in 2024 ranked the country 109th in the world.

According to the Confederation of Mongolian Journalists, some 20 media workers are now under some kind of formal investigation for their reporting. — AFP