Foreign Language Festival
stages Macbeth in English
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8644
By B.TUNGALAG
The 13th Foreign Language
Festival was organized by the Foreign
Language Center
of the Mongolian State University of Arts and Culture on April 5 at the Student
Theater of the university.
Seven schools of the Mongolian State
University of Arts and Culture competed with a play by William Shakespeare. The
plays were performed in English.
The event aims to increase English language
knowledge of students and let them spend free time efficiently.
Students from the School
of Media and Broadcasting, School of Cultural Education,
School of State
Screen Arts, School
of Culture and Civilization, School of Music
and Arts, School of Dance and School
of Fine Arts performed
their rendition of “Macbeth” by William Shakespeare.
Last year, student showcased their rendition
of “Midsummer Night’s Dream” by William Shakespeare.
One of the special things about the drama
competition is that students don’t have to be majoring in performing arts to
compete.
“Macbeth” has five acts which was shared by
all seven schools.
Although the students didn’t study English
professionally, the plays were executed well. The costumes and stage designs
were accurately presented despite their limited endowments.
The events were judged by
judges from the UK Embassy, Mongolian State Academic Drama Theater, British School
in Ulaanbaatar, Educational Advising and Resource Center.
Judges selected first and second places, and
the best actor and actress of the competition.
The first place went to the School of Culture
and Civilization. The award was followed by a 500,000 MNT cash prize. The School of Media and Broadcastin won second place.
Enkhtsolmon from the School
of Culture and Civilization was named
as the best actor, and Oyuntuya from School
of Media and Broadcaster
was named as the best actress.
They were awarded a right to watch seven plays
at the Mongolia State Academic Drama Theater, which will be staged from April
9.
In his closing speech, Director of the School of Culture and Civilization Ph.D. G.Sukhbat
said, “The English language proficiency of Mongolian students is improving day
by day. They now have the ability to stage classical plays in foreign
language.”
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8644
Mongolian woman wins UNESCO
writing competition
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8538
By B.TUNGALAG
The UNESCO Office in Bangkok and Tokyo
Institute of Technology jointly announced an e-contest themed “Skill for better
life” among students and teachers in Asian Pacific countries from August to
December, 2013.
Mongolian teacher Ts.Urantsetseg won the
competition through her article titled “Secrets of being healthy and happy” and
received an award from the UNESCO Office in Bangkok on March 27.
Ts.Urantsetseg’s award for best article was
handed to her by Barbara Trzmiel, program assistant of the UNESCO Office in Bangkok.
Ts.Urantsetseg has been working in the
education sector of Bulgan
Province for 34 years.
The competition received 198 materials
including essays and videos from over 19 countries.
Ts.Urantsetseg is the second Mongolian woman
who received the prize from UNESCO.
L.Bold: Let’s save our Mother
Tongue
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8615
By B.DULGUUN
The Director of the Institute of Language
and Literature of the Mongolian Academy of Science (MAS), State Honored Emeritus and
academician L.Bold gave an interview about language preservation issues in Mongolia.
Recently, the media has received many criticisms
for bringing up issues about the safety of the Mongolian language. What is your
position on the subject, as an expert on this matter?
I’ll just state my position.
From the chambers of the parliament to ordinary stockholders, from the
president to individual citizens, everyone is talking about the weakening of
social value of the Mongolian language. It’s also written in medias. Today,
we’re living in a completely new environment where our lifestyles are rapidly
changing. Due to this, we’re acting irresponsibly to things, especially to the
mother tongue. Inappropriate use is the main issue. For instance, getting
carried away in trying to speed things up and developing unprocessed material,
criticizing those who point out mistakes by saying that it’s just a comment on
the web, and using foreign words to express things when it can be expressed in
Mongolian words. All of these affect the weakening social functions of the
Mongolian language.
Presently, it’s known as the
spread of mother tongue. After reading few articles on the destruction of the
mother tongues in other countries, all sorts of comments are written about the
signs of approaching dangers. It hasn’t happened yet. As long as Mongolia and
state language exist, there’s spread. Issues about knowledge of the mother
tongue should be wide-ranged from government policies to individuals’ knowledge
of the mother tongue.
Is there a way to organize
the many dozens of foreign words that have become apart of our daily lives?
It’s possible. In the
official state language law, it’s stated, “Translate foreign words to Mongolian
or use it with explanation of its meanings.” From the history of MAS, in 1924,
a terminology division with 10 sections was established adjacent to the Institute of Scripture, with J.Tseveen as the Head.
Until the 1970s, this division was part of the Institute of Language
and Literature and was responsible for correcting and setting terminologies.
Mongolian terminologists play a big role in keeping Mongolian mother language
clean. In 1990, many places lost their original purpose. According to the law,
it’s stated that it will be part of the State Language Council. It separated
from language experts and supervision. Minister of Culture Sports and Tourism
Ts.Oyungerel once said that state activities related to the preservation of
mother tongue will be separated from small divisions. The Head of the State
Language Council is the minister in charge of culture. It hasn’t completely
separated from small divisions. We must enrich and develop this precious
heritage passed down from our ancestors and pass it to future generations.
To improve and develop the
spread of mother tongue, what are scientists doing? Talks of academician
Tumurtogoo about removing the letters “ú” and “ü” was not received well by
many. If they are removed, how will you distinguish words such as “áîëü¸”
(let’s stop) and “áîëú¸” (let’s become)?
It’s easy to remove “ú” and
“ü.” You can write it as “áîë踔 and “áîëî¸.” The main issue isn’t that. China and Japan have used Chinese characters
for a long time. No one can determine when Mongolian language was created. It’s
a different issue to determine when the Mongolian language and Mongols were
mentioned in history. Recently, the 2220th year anniversary of establishment of
Khunnu Empire was celebrated. The core of this is that it proves that
Mongolians existed during this time and it has been accepted by many countries.
Mongolians had literature of ancestors which is mentioned as “kemo” in Chinese
sources. Researchers translate this word as “cutting wood.” From our research,
it had structured phonetic letters. Proof of this is the word “áè÷èã”
(writing). The initial meaning of “áè÷èã” was printing and carving. Certain
phonetics was carved on wood. In Turkic, it means “yazi” (in Mongolian it means
to draw). From this, it can be concluded that Mongolia had phonetic scrip since
Khunnu era. Mongolia
had Uigarjin script which also has phonetic scrip from around fifth to sixth
century.
From careful observations of
many changes in Mongolian writing, it can be seen that Mongolians tried to
include changes in phonetics to its script. If we see it from this perspective,
there isn’t many linguistic basis on removing “ú” and “ü.” This issue was also
discussed in the 1950s. Majority of the people wanted to keep them so
Damdinsuren left it the same. The recent uproar was the same. For a nationality
rich in history of literature and scripts, there’ll always be issues about
writing rules. Even now, after starting to use new letters, Mongolians haven’t
completely organized it. Scientists discuss solutions to overcome this matter
domestically.
Approximately a year ago, a
group of linguists met with the Prime Minister to submit a proposal and an
approval and conclusion was made. Can you elaborate on this?
At the end of 2012,
scientists of the School of Mongolian Language and Culture of the National
University of Mongolia (NUM), School
of Mongol Studies of the Mongolian
State University of Education, and Institute
of Language and
Literature of the MAS joined to meet the Prime Minister. We proposed that we
establish an integrated grammar dictionary. Students enrolling into
universities and government employees give examinations on their knowledge of
the mother language and take measurements to improve their grammar and writing
skills on the media. The Prime Minister welcomed the proposal and approved the
Resolution No.37 to improve the knowledge of Mongolian language and literature.
We had basis to propose.
In 2012, with several of my
colleagues, I approached the General
Specialized Inspection Agency and conducted a broad research throughout
the country on Mongolian language education program of general education
schools and tested the language knowledge of middle school and high school
teachers. At state levels, out of 12,423 fifth grade students of 172 general
education schools, 7,169 students (53.4 percent) didn’t meet standards, and
65.7 percent of total students couldn’t complete 50 percent of given tasks.
This is a truly regretful and insufficient statistic showing the depreciated
knowledge of the Mongolian language. We shouldn’t hide this, there’s
insufficiency in correct management of correct governmental laws and policies.
How will grammars of the
media be organized?
Lately, the number of media
has increased immensely. Currently in Mongolia, there are around 100
newspapers, some 50 television channels and on top of that there are radio FMs.
On the one side, it is a good thing that the public has access to a variety of
mediums to choose from. How well these medias are fulfilling their duty to
strengthening the reach of the mother tongue is another issue. Mongolia hasn’t
had the experience of having so many press and media. It’s necessary to learn
from the experiences of places that have experiences in dealing with lots of
media. For instance, at the end of each year, in Inner Mongolia and China, experts
read notable published materials of the year. Analysis of every aspect of
linguistics including grammar, terminology, meanings, and literature is done.
If there’s a mistake, they take measurements for violating and creating
distortion in language norms. There’s an Institute of Mother Tongue
for implementing governmental policies about the Japanese language. This
institute, besides publishing dictionaries with newly developed words,
publicizes incorrect use of words, phrases and foreign words uses when it
could’ve used Japanese words. The reputation of the media mentioned in this may
either rise or drop depending on whether they were praised or criticized. We
can start a campaign and discuss grammatical rules like China.
Secondly, as mentioned by
Tudev, we should select publication companies that give the most accurate
information concisely and completely. This isn’t an impossible work. Somebody
needs to start it. It’s said that although Mongolia has a huge vocabulary, we
talk in few words. I interpret this as insufficiency of work done to promote
interest in literature among children from a young age and works associated
with this.
The parliament is discussing
the Mother Tongue Law. In the new legal project, was expert opinion on the
subject adequately reflected?
Yes. I worked in the working
group to develop the Mother Tongue Law. Legal documents must be developed
accurately. The law must include the implementation procedure, how the press
may use language, and who and at what level grammatical rules should be used. I
believe that this law is an improvement upon the previous versions and able to
surpass it. Parliament members talked about the law many times and made the
public understand its significance. I hope that this law is approved in the
near future.
You said that you wanted to
get an integrated solution by holding a national mother language and cultural
consultation to talk about pressing issues in the field. Is the ministry
supporting this idea?
It’s clear that apart from
us, educators, journalists, politicians, calligraphers, novelists and everyone
in our society is related to this matter. A wonderful standard where many
people discuss and come to resolutions is being established. With this in mind,
we want to hold a national consultation. Minister Ts.Oyungerel is a very
intelligent and strong willed person. She’ll probably make definite decisions
for this. It seems that only financial issues are left. Not much money is
required for this. I heard that some 100 thousand MNT was planned. I wonder how
much a bucket of coal from Tavan Tolgoi costs. All I’m asking for is to give
one or two shovels of coal. This seems possible.
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8615
D.Oyuntsetseg: Politicians
ruined journalism
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8409
By B.DULGUUN
The following is an interview
with Senior Officer of the Public Relations and Communication Division of the
Office of the President of Mongolia, D.Oyuntsetseg, who worked for many years
in the parliament’s public relations department.
The interview highlights her
professional views about the development of countries and modern Mongolian
journalism.
-Everyone sees the
development of countries differently. They think within their profession. For a
journalist, how is the development of a country defined?
-I think that if one moves,
they strive for their country. That is, if they are employed and work, this
somehow helps society. Striving for your country doesn’t mean you have to have
a big business and develop big projects. Although it is work that develops a
country.
As long as one is doing
something for society on a daily basis, they are contributing to the
development of the country. Blending with normal citizens, meeting and talking
with people of the parliament who are working to develop the country are
contributions us journalists provide to develop the country by advertising good
works done for the country and giving warnings about wrong works. Journalists
must work ahead of society. I believe that we must always work ahead of time.
Before, society used to
follow journalists. Now, with rapid advancements in society, journalists seem
to follow the times. Contributions made by journalists for the country notifies
society. For instance, they find out what sorts of careless moves MPs are about
to make, ahead of time. We need to receive warnings from the media.
The people who are supposed
to contribute to the development of a country are actually journalists.
-From the perspective of a
journalist, how well is the country developing?
-It’s developing well. There
are some who say it’s not developing. In my opinion, it’s developing well.
Since when has Mongolia had
so many cars driving on the streets of Ulaanbaatar?
Since when did it have such tall buildings?
Development of the country
lies behind all of this. Nowadays, there’s hardly anyone who wants to sit at
home doing nothing. Everyone’s doing their work with all of their might and
developing the country very efficiently. Due to poor decisions made by
politicians, there are times when we get off track and lean the wrong way.
Aside from that, I think that the overall mass is developing.
-Freedom of the press is said
to be restricted. How exactly is it being restricted? How will we expand
restricted freedom?
-Politicians got a hold of
the press. It’s false to say only one politician or business man is behind
this. Journalists should have different perspectives and actions. They need to
reveal the wrong and praise the good as much as possible.
There are good and bad in
both the Democratic Party and Mongolian People’s Party. With courage, faults
need to criticized and achievements need to be praised. Even if it was one
politician pulling the strings, he’s neither good nor bad.
As long as he’s human, he’ll
have his good and bad sides. Therefore, both good and bad aspects need to
brought to light.
When the Mongolian People’s
Party pulls some strings, the entire Democratic Party is written about as being
bad in the media and when the Democratic Party pulls some strings, the
Mongolian People’s Party is written up as bad. This situation has ruined
journalism significantly.
-Does this mean that
journalism has become a big obstacle for development?
-Exactly. If journalists had
done exactly like the Golden Generation of the 1990s, criticizing the wrong and
praising the right, the development of journalism would have been completely
different from today’s.
Journalists are the critics
of society but now they aren’t hunting their prey. If they leave their prey on
the side and hunt others, the one’s they excuse will keep on with wrongdoings.
If journalists criticize without discriminating, society will naturally
develop. Nevertheless, journalists who are supposed to be doctors of society
are unable to do their work as critics.
-Wasn’t it because there
wasn’t any other choice for journalism? Wasn’t it because there weren’t any
wealthy journalists with funds to overcome the expenses of publishing a
newspaper?
-There weren’t any
journalists or anyone in the journalism sector with that much money, which is
why we ended up with the current state. If it didn’t cost that much money to
publish a newspaper and if they had printing machines and paper, it would have
been clean. Since it wasn’t possible, politicians naturally got a hold of the
press starting from 2000 and split it in two.
-Now, digital journalism is
advancing rapidly. Is this big leverage to get out of the grasp of politicians?
-It has to be leverage.
However, politicians are trying to get their hands on it. When you try to
disclose information about one side, it’s soon blocked, right? No matter if
it’s good or bad, news in newspapers is still kept on it.
Later, whether it’s corrected
or given tolerance, it still passes by. The digital world develops one
exceptional publishing freedom: comments inform you of the social atmosphere.
Through comments, you can find out about social psychology and how people are
referring to issues.
The government is blocking
some comments. What’s wrong with typing South Korea? This is absolutely
wrong. This is a democratic society. Nowadays, citizens are able to give
feedback to the media. It’s not just leaving after reading. We’re getting a
good reading of the social atmosphere. When the Prime Minister discusses an
issue, through comments, we are able to show how society is viewing the matter
and whether it’s correct or wrong.
Everyone expresses their
thoughts. This is one huge device that will surveil social psychology. For
these reasons, digital journalism is contributing massively to social
development. If politicians are smart enough, instead of blocking comments,
they will analyze the atmosphere of society through the comments citizens
leave.
-The chances of working in
risky conditions with restrictions seem rather low for Mongolian journalists.
How exactly is the freedom of journalists being violated?
-Freedom isn’t about catching
us and imprisoning, beating or abusing journalists. Media rights is measured on
our rights to access information and how open it is for us. Today, if you go to
any ministry or office and make an inquiry, they won’t give you information.
When you go to connected
ministries for clarification of serious issues, they don’t say anything. They
keep on transferring you to someone else, and before you know it, the issue
dies out. This is what’s restricting the freedom of the media.
If information that isn’t a
threat to national security and unrelated to secrets of the state is open, it
means that the freedom of the media is provided. If you look at it from this
perspective, freedom of the media is insufficient, especially at the state and
ministry levels. It’s different for normal organizations and citizens.
The fact that employees dodge
your questions and answer you very politely, saying that they don’t know and to
ask another person – or that they’ll inform you later when they are about to
find a weak spot in places that are causing the most confusion and
complications – clearly shows that there’s no freedom in the media. Although
the doors of the ministry and government offices are open, officials will not
open their mouths.
-During most of your time working
in journalism, you were a journalist covering parliament. How competent are
journalists in the political field today?
-A long time ago, media
organizations used to pick the best journalist for politics. This means the
most educated journalists with the best analytical capabilities, who wouldn’t
wimp out in front of politician, were able to work and interview politicians.
You can continue working in
politics. If you are incapable of doing your work, you’re fired straight away.
Penalties were a very fussy department. Now, a young man may disappear after
working for a few months in politics. What happens is that he becomes an
official. Another young man shows up and after two months he disappears. He
also becomes the head of an office. Now,
promotions are given very quickly and it doesn’t last long. Regulations are
lost this way. A child who’s just found the rhythm to do things disappears.
They actually need to work for at least a year to get the hang of things.
Becoming a department head
after two months means that he is being promoted when he just got the hang of
things. Thus, political journalists have worsened. While one is interviewing
someone, another comes and takes the interview over altogether, with no
manners. Only a few are actually getting clarifications and interviews, the
rest are all the same.
-Regarding the degrading
capability of journalists, isn’t it connected to too many new newspapers,
televisions and websites?
-Well, it’s only a matter of
time. There were many yellow newspapers in the 1990s, right? Everyone used to
read yellow newspapers. Only a few are still remaining. Currently, there’s a
flood of daily newspapers, websites and television stations. As time goes by,
it’ll automatically decrease. Our leaders are shutting down television stations
and websites, which is completely unnecessary. In time, those losing in the
market will close down.
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8409
Mongolian Cultural Days opens
in Hong Kong
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8380
The Mongolian Cultural Days
series event commenced in Hong Kong on March
18.
The series of events are aimed at promoting
Mongolian folk arts and nomadic culture, and to attract tourists to Mongolia. The
event will run for seven days.
The organizers of the event are World’s
Mongolian Cultural Association and Hong-Kong-based organizations Asia Society,
Royal Geographical Society and Odyssey Publications, and Mongolia’s Consulates-General in Hong Kong and Macao.
The weekly events include a promotion activity
for the book, “Chinggis Khaan and the Mongolian Empire” published by Asia
Society Organization and Smithsonian Institution. During the events, Carl
Robinson, author of “Mongolia: Nomad Empire of the Eternal Blue Sky” will be
interviewed and a presentation on Mongolia for students and teachers of Hong
Kong International School will be made, along with a seminar on khuumii (throat
singing) and Mongolian performing arts.
Khusugtun, a Mongolian folk group, is also
planning to stage a concert titled “Mongolian Week” during the events.
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8380
Ariunaa Suri showcases her
collection at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in Tokyo
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8471
By B.BAATAR
Mongolian designer Ariunaa
Suri presented her collections at the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in Tokyo, on March 22.
This was her second time taking part in the
event that defines future trends of the fashion world. This time, her show
mainly focused on men’s wear made of pure linen materials. Mongolian models
Ch.Subedei, Ts.Michihdmaa, S.Tugs, Yu.Baljidmaa and I.Tugsuu wore her designs
to songs of The Lemons rock band of Mongolia from their new album.
The Mercedes Benz Fashion Week is held twice a
year in the world’s fashion capitals, during which, the trends for the next
season are born from the latest collections that are unveiled. The Mercedes
Benz Fashion Week Tokyo is hosted by the Japan Fashion Week Organization and
held on March and October.
Founder and Chief Designer of the brand,
Ariunaa Suri is a Mongolian designer whose passion is creating fashion for
individuals and unique people. The brand was established in 2011.
Ariuna has worked as a creative designer in Berlin after her 10 year study and research on clothing
in Bremen, Germany.
For her designs and collections, she urges
assimilation of the Mongolian nomadic ethic with Western style and reflecting
it in the mixed soft hues by organic fabrics such as wool, cashmere and leather
of live stocks from the steppe of wild weather.
Ariuna Suri’s brand principle is “Mystery of
In-Between.”
According to her philosophy, we are a dweller
between the West and the East where the culture, lifestyle and history of art
are divergent.
The inspiration of the outfits is rooted in
Mongolian traditional extraordinary costume’s unique pattern, elements and
motivation.
Also the punk urban looks of her FW14/15
Collection is mixed with slight themes, Nomadic Ethic and Western styles by
neutral and the intermediate colors in the natural fabrics.
The sense of freedom in the collection is
inspired by wild nature of Mongolian endless steppes and exotic tradition of
non-sedentary nomads.
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8471
22.1 billion MNT required for
drinking water safety
http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8591
By M.ZOLJARGAL
International and domestic
organizations have jointly formulated the first-ever program for ensuring
drinking water safety in Mongolia and presented it to the board members of the
Ulaanbaatar City Administrations this week.
The program will be carried out for two years
until 2016, to supply safe and standard drinking water to residents of the
city. A total of 22.1 billion MNT will be spent or the program.
All water tanks, artesian wells, water kiosks
and water delivery trucks in the city will be inspected for possible risks to
human health and the environment. The results of the inspection will be used to
fight threats to drinking water safety in Ulaanbaatar.
The board members agreed to discuss the
program at the next meeting of the Ulaanbaatar City Council for approval.
The Mongolian Office of the World Health
Organization, Water Supply and Sewerage Authority of Ulaanbaatar City (USUG),
Tuul River Basin Administration and the Office of Ulaanbaatar City Governor are
collaborating on the project.
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=8591