Despite Chinese authorities’ repeated digital crackdowns, the internet has long served as a vital platform for Mongolians in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to freely use their language, share music, literature, and connect with each other. A recent report by PEN America and the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Centre revealed that the Chinese government is actively suppressing Mongolian language and culture in specific online domains, dismantling crucial digital communities where Mongolian identity flourished.
The study, titled ‘Save Our Mother Tongue,’ disclosed that nearly 89% of known Mongolian cultural websites have been censored or completely shut down. Additionally, online communities, including the popular Mongolian-language social media app, Bainu, have faced restrictions. The report also exposed a policy termed ‘One Province, One Newspaper, One Client,’ enabling state media outlets to launch their own apps, displacing independent platforms developed by Mongolian creators.
Soyonbo Borjgin, a Southern Mongolian journalist now residing in New York after facing government actions, witnessed the closure of ‘The Inner Mongolia Daily,’ where he worked, and was subjected to re-education. Borjgin now speaks out against what he perceives as “systematic cultural repression,” emphasizing the significance of the digital space as the last bastion of freedom for Mongolian people. He highlighted the deliberate eradication of spaces where Mongolians can use their language, share music, discuss history, and foster community connections.
Borjgin further lamented the disappearance of Mongolian language usage in online discussions within his region, noting the absence of Mongolian content in cyberspace. Advocacy groups like PEN America and the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Centre are urging tech companies, governments, and international bodies to take collective action to protect Mongolian culture online in the region. Liesl Gerntholtz, Managing Director of PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Centre at PEN America, emphasized the need for tech and social media companies to integrate a cultural rights framework in their platform development, uphold human rights responsibilities, and collaborate with independent organizations to provide digital support to affected Mongolian communities.
