The Ministry of Justice and Internal Affairs of Mongolia (MOJHA; ), also referred to as the Ministry of Justice or the Ministry of Home Affairs, is a Mongolian government agency that upholds the principles of fairness and rule of law in

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

, and aims to create legal guarantees so that the federal government may ensure human rights and freedoms. The ministry carries out activities such as developing legal policy (including its implementation and coordination), public administration, financing and investment, treaties and cooperation, and internal auditing (which includes monitoring and evaluating). It divides its security duties with the Ministry of Defense and the General Intelligence Agency. The ministry is governed by the following relevant documents: *

Constitution of Mongolia The current Constitution of Mongolia (, ''Mongol Ulsyn Ündsen Khuuli'', "Fundamental Law of Mongolia") was adopted on 13 January 1992, put into force on 12 February, and amended in 1999, 2000 and 2019. The new constitution established a represen ...

*The Law on Government *Law on the legal status of the law *Law on Administrative and Territorial Units and their Management *Law on Budget *Law on Fiscal Stability

History

At the founding of the

Bogd Khanate of Mongolia The Bogd Khanate of Mongolia ( mn, , Богд хаант Монгол Улс; ) was the government of Outer Mongolia between 1911 and 1919 and again from 1921 to 1924. By the spring of 1911, some prominent Mongol nobles including Prince Tögs ...

in 1911, a new Mongolian government was formed with five ministries, including internal affairs. It was first headed by

Da Lam Tserenchimed Da Lam Tserenchimed (, bo, ཏཱ་བླ་མ་ཚེ་རིང་འཆི་མེད།; 1869 – 1914) was a prominent lama and early 20th century Mongolian independence leader. In December 1911, he was appointed interior minister ...

, who later on became the first

Prime Minister of Mongolia The Prime Minister of Mongolia () is the head of government of Mongolia and heads the Mongolian cabinet. The Prime Minister is appointed by the Mongolian parliament or the State Great Hural, and can be removed by the parliament with a vote of no ...

. In 1934, by resolution of the Council of People’s Ministers, the rules of procedure of the State Internal Security Protection stipulated that all security threat protection activities on the territory of the state shall be conducted by aforementioned laws. In the mid-1930s, Prime Minister

Peljidiin Genden Peljidiin Genden ( mn, Пэлжидийн Гэндэн; 1892 or 1895 – November 26, 1937) was a prominent political leader of the Mongolian People's Republic who served as the country's first President (1924 to 1927; Navaandorjiin Jadambaa wa ...

balked at recommendations by Soviet leader

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

to elevate the Committee of Internal Affairs of the Mongolian People's Republic, at least 26 percent of whose staff were agents of the Soviet

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

at the time, to an independent cabinet-level ministry. Frustrated by Genden's disobedience, Stalin promoted

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

Khorloogiin Choibalsan as the new Minister of Internal Affairs. In March 1936, Choibalsan's Interior Ministry orchestrated the firing of his government and the removal Genden from the post of First Secretary of the Central Committee of the People's Revolutionary Party, due to his role in the deterioration of Mongol–Soviet relations. Due to his status and the power of his opponents, namely the new

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gro ...

Anandyn Amar, Choibalsan and likewise the Ministry of Internal Affairs became the ''de facto'' most powerful body the country. Just two months later the ministry amended its rules to include the detention high ranking politicians and public figures without first consulting any of its party or political superiors, effectively increasing its influence over the country. Under the direction and guidance Choibalsan's Soviet handler Chopyak and other mentors from the NKVD, the ministry planned over the next three years to carry out the repressive purges on opponents of Stalin/Choibalsan, religious figures (mostly

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

Lama Lama (; "chief") is a title for a teacher of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term ''guru'', meaning "heavy one", endowed with qualities the student will eventually embody. The Tibetan word "lama" means "hi ...

s) and enemies of the state.Baabar 1999, p. 353 Notable Russian aides to the ministry included Deputy NKVD Commissar Mikhail Frinovsky and NKVD Chief

Nikolai Yezhov Nikolai Ivanovich Yezhov ( rus, Никола́й Ива́нович Ежо́в, p=nʲɪkɐˈɫaj ɪˈvanəvʲɪt͡ɕ (j)ɪˈʐof; 1 May 1895 – 4 February 1940) was a Soviet secret police official under Joseph Stalin who was head of the N ...

. When the purges ended, official blame was laid on the deputy minister of internal affairs Nasantogtoh, and his Soviet handler Kichikov. The Interior Ministry was later replaced by the Ministry of Public Security. The Ministry of Public Security of the MPR served as a catalyst for the republic's paramilitary forces, which totaled around 30,000 men by 1955. It was founded in its current form after the abolition of the socialist state and its split from the General Intelligence Agency in 1990.

Subordinate agencies

* National Police Agency (Aрван тавны цагдаа) * General Authority for Border Protection (Хилийн хамгаалалт) * Internal Troops of Mongolia (Дотоод цэргүүд) * General Authority for State Registration * General Archival Authority * General Executive Agency of Court Decision * Mongolian Immigration Agency * Intellectual Property Office

National Police Agency

Established in 1965, the National Police Agency is responsible for maintaining law and order and preventing crime throughout Mongolia. Its motto is "Striving together for peaceful and secure life".

Border Police

The Border Police, or

Border Guard A border guard of a country is a national security agency that performs border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Federal Police (Germany), Germany, Guardia di Finanza, Italy or State Border Gua ...

performs national security duties at the border checkpoints of Mongolia and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. Officially known as the General Authority for Border Protection, it conducts inspections of vehicles crossing the border and does bag checks at Chinggis Khaan and New Ulaanbaatar International Airport similarly to the American

Transportation Security Administration The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that has authority over the security of transportation systems within, and connecting to the United States. It was created ...

(TSA). A force of border guards are subordinated to the Main Directorate of Border Defense of the Ministry of Defense and utilize motorized and mounted units as well as acquired helicopters for aerial reconnaissance.

Internal Troops

The Internal Troops is the National

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

force and reserve duties in the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

. Under the command of a The Internal Troops are led by a

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

who reports directly to the Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs, It protects buildings for institutions and areas such as the Government Palace. As the successor to the Internal Troops of the Mongolian People's Army (then known as the Border and Internal Troops Administration), the Internal Troops in their current form were adopted in 1995, until it was dissolved in March 2013 by the

State Great Khural The State Great Khural, ; "State Great Assembly" is the unicameral parliament of Mongolia.Montsame News Agency. ''Mongolia''. 2006, Foreign Service office of Montsame News Agency, , p. 40 It is located in the Government Palace. History ;1 ...

before the recreation of the Internal Troops was reconsidered following the

2016 Mongolian legislative election Legislative elections were held in Mongolia on 29 June 2016. The governing Democratic Party lost to a landslide victory of the Mongolian People's Party, retaining only 9 of 76 seats in the Great Khural. While they just lost under 2% of the popular ...

. At the time of its original establishment, the Directorate of the Internal Troops was placed under the command of the Commissioner General, however, it was not fully clear what ministry has the ultimate control of it.

List of ministers

(1911-1914) * Khorloogiin Choibalsan (1936-1939) * Byaraagiyn Chimid (1980-1982) * Origiyn Jambaldorj (1982-1990) * Jugneegiin Amarsanaa (1990-1992) * Namsraijabyn Lavsanjav (1992-1996) * Jugneegiin Amarsanaa (1996-1998) * Sarygiyn Batchuluun (1998-1999) * L. Tsog (1999) cting Minister* Dash Ganbold (2000-2001) * Tsendiin Nyamdorj (2001-2005) * Batbold Sandui (2006) * Dorj Odbayar (2006-2007) * Tsend Munhk-Orgil (2008) * Tsendiin Nyamdorj (2008-2012) * Khishigdemberel Temuujin (2012-2015) * Dambii Dorligjav (2015-2016) * Sandag Byambatsogt (2016-2017) * Tsendiin Nyamdorj (2017–present)

References

{{Reflist Government ministries of Mongolia Justice ministries Politics of Mongolia Internal affairs ministries Law enforcement in Mongolia Military of Mongolia 1911 establishments in Mongolia