Mongolia in transition : the new legal framework for land rights and land protection

This paper examines the draft Land Law of Mongolia, a key factor in the emerging legal framework, with special emphasis on ownership and possessory right, land protection and land use, and enforcement and dispute resolution. Also discussed are the geographical, historical, political, and policy contexts of the current land reform effort, and the often conflicting attitudes of Mongolians regarding it, e.g., fears that a market economy will lead to widespread environmental degradation or, conversely, that crop output will sharply decrease unless land is given over to control of private individuals. Assessment of land reform in Mongolia must take into account the absence of a strong tradition of private land ownership, the difficult agrarian situation (resulting from climate, geography, and the nomadic tradition), and the existence of conflicting political attitudes. Several changes to the draft Land Law are recommended, namely, to: (1) reduce State control and encourage individual decisionmaking, supported by extension services and training; (2) reduce restraints on the transfer of land rights as constituting a disincentive to improving the quality of the land; (3) generally prohibit expropriation; (4) guarantee inheritance of land rights; (5) conduct a cadastral survey to identify boundaries of ownership and establish a related land registration system; and (6) establish specific procedures to ensure open and due process in cases in which the State exercises its power to terminate land rights.