Mongolians pick president after scandal-plagued campaign

ULAN BATOR: Mongolians cast ballots yesterday to choose between a horse breeder, a judoka and a feng shui master in a presidential election rife with corruption scandals and nationalist rhetoric.

From its sprawling steppes to its capital and even in yurts serving as polling stations, people began to vote in the landlocked country sandwiched between Russia and China that was once viewed as an oasis of democracy full of economic promise.

Nomadic herders filed into a yurt in the city of Erdene Sum, 100km east of the capital Ulan Bator to cast their ballots, wearing the traditional deel coat, fedoras and boots.

“As a voter I believe justice is the most important thing for Mongolia,” said Dendev Boris, 63, who unlike others showed up in a business suit.

“There must be justice in every industry,” he said. “I haven't taken the corruption allegations too seriously because they have not been proven.”

The resource-rich nation of just three million has struggled in recent years with mounting debt and low voter turnout.

The next president will inherit a US$ 5.5 billion International Monetary Fund-led bailout designed to stabilise its economy and lessen its dependence on China, which purchases 80 per cent of Mongolian exports.

But voters have heard little from the three candidates about unemployment and jobs – their top concerns in opinion polls – as campaigns have instead focused on their opponents' allegedly shady pasts.

Among the accusations are a 60 billion tugrik ( US$ 25 million) scheme to sell government posts, hefty offshore accounts and a clandestine donation from a member of a South Korean church – all of which the candidates have denied. — AFP