Mongolia’s Drug Crackdown Misses the Real Crisis
- Mongolia Weekly
- Aug 7
- 2 min read
A late-night brawl in Ulaanbaatar in mid-July 2025, just after the Naadam holidays, has triggered national outrage. Sons of political and business elites allegedly ganged up on a civilian outside a nightclub, leaving him seriously injured.
Three are now in custody. One fled the country and is being sought. For many, the case reinforced an old suspicion that Mongolia’s justice system treats the well-connected differently and that there are still two Mongolias.
Prime Minister Gombojavyn Zandanshatar moved swiftly. He summoned top officials, promised fast-track reforms, launched a new anti-narcotics task force, and ordered a clampdown on locally grown small quantities of cannabis.
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