Conflict between a state’s president and lawmakers can lead to ugly things: Unpleasant executive orders, impeachment, government shutdowns, even revolutions… or a very high-level hunger strike, as may soon be the case in Mongolia.
The president of Mongolia, Khaltmaa Battulga, is desperate to be heard by the country's parliament, the Great Khural. With his Democratic Party grossly outnumbered by the ruling People's Party, no measure is too desperate, it seems – even that of a hunger strike.
A hunger strike? That's the stage we're at.
Battulga made the comment during an interview on state TV, Bloomberg reports. He was talking about how he would react to the parliament ignoring his criticisms. He recently asked the legislature to disband, for its failure to improve the country's economy.
Battulga is a member of the opposition Democratic Party, which holds a mere nine seats in the parliament, compared to the People's Party's 65. The motion to dissolve parliament requires at least a two-thirds majority to pass and, with the president's powers effectively limited to introducing and vetoing legislation, a hunger strike might indeed be what it takes to make himself heard.
How serious he was, though, is a standing question. Battulga's spokesperson has made no official comment.
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