Ahead of this month’s legislative elections, an opposition lawmaker in Mongolia was fatally beaten, his party announced on Sunday.
According to a statement from his party, the victim was a governor of Sant Sum in central Mongolia and a member of the Democratic Party (DP).
According to the party, the man was assassinated on Saturday.
The man was identified as B. Bayanmunkh by the local media, but he went by “BB” in a party statement.
“A star of democracy… has lost his life at the hands of others,” the DP said, expressing its sadness.
Referring to the abbreviation for the ruling Mongolian People’s Party, “At approximately 10:00 pm… B was killed by others during a meeting of five members of the MPP in the first round of parliamentary elections,” a party statement was released.
On June 28, parliamentary elections are scheduled to take place in Mongolia, a country with 3.5 million people that is three times larger than France.
In the democratic nation between China and Russia, where all political viewpoints are represented in the media and contentious debate is the norm, violent election campaigns are uncommon.
However, detractors claim that the nation’s rule of law is deteriorating and that the administration is attempting to soften criticism of its record on corruption.
The DP statement said, “Every conceivable pressure, including intense government pressure and espionage, is being applied on this election.
AFP