Youth protests at Sükhbaatar Square, Ulaanbaatar, April 8, 2022. Screenshot from the Mongolian National Broadcaster YouTube channel Following the massive violent January protests in Kazakhstan, there were attempts to analyze the potential of protest movements in Mongolia, the country whose peculiar geographic location makes it especially susceptible to political whims of its only two neighbors: Russia and China. Thus, some suggested that, unlike Kazakhstan, where sectoral or professional solidarity often became the instigator of protests in industrial monotowns, Mongolia would witness only occasional demonstrations instigated by political scandals or staged by rivaling political parties. In this regard, the massive peaceful youth protests “with no political affiliation” held April 7-8, 2022, at Sükhbaatar Square, the central square of Mongolia’s capital Ulaanbaatar, seemed a little odd even for the usually emphatic political life in the country, especially given the absence of youth engagement in it. Moreover, the protests triggered an unusually violent responsereaction from security forces, as the videos of police violence, beatings and arrests spread across the Mongolian segment of social media, causing bewilderment and outrage. Unlike traditional political demonstrations, these protestors did not demand the resignation of the government, but urged the government to do their job, and very soon the movement became known as the “Do Your Job!” (Ажлаа хий) protests, while the participants brought in their complaints about corruption, governmental inefficiency, injustice, debt burden and, of course, inflation. Through their representatives, they delivered to the government a list of fifteen demands, including measures to prevent inflation, revise tax law, fairly distribute credit, support industrialization, and restrict governmental rights and spending. On top of the the long-lasting effect of the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine recently caused inflation, food shortages, and high fuel prices, as Russia's share of Mongolia's total imports far exceeds that for any state in Central Asia and the Caucasus, except Kazakhstan and Armenia. What's more, in terms of energy supplies Mongolia is almost entirely dependent on Russia. Залуучууд… pic.twitter.com/IJmTjhREGF — Anna Sue (@dj__anna) April 8, 2022 The striking feature of these protests, commonly dubbed “youth demonstrations” (залуусын жагсаал), was the fact that the youth in Mongolia has historically remained the most politically idle demographic segment. In the most recent parliamentary by-election of October 2021, the youth showed the lowest voter turnout of less than 40 percent, while that of citizens aged 60 and older was close to 70 percent. This time the overwhelming majority of the protestors were reported to be between 16 and 24, making it the youngest crowd to ever rally in front of the Government Palace, which houses not only the State Great Khural, the parliament of Mongolia, but also the offices of the president and prime minister. It is worth noting, that back in January 2021, the current President Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh had to resign as prime minister following the protests at the same square against governmental handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, blaming, in the meantime, the then President Khaltmaagiin Battulga from the Democratic Party for orchestrating the protests. The current Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene himself is well aware of the political efficiency of popular protests, as his rise to the top of the political scene was also facilitated by numerous protests and demonstrations he led. Despite the relative familiarity of both the president and prime minister with political protests, the night of the first day of demonstrations witnessed enormous police presence and the excessive use of violence, leading, according to the police, to the detention of 20 protestors and another 18 taken to the sobering-up stations. Interestingly, their justification for the use of force was very much in the manner common across Central Asia, as they reported the following: Гэвч шударга ёс, зөв зүйтэй зүйлийн төлөө жагсаж, үзэл бодлоо илэрхийлж байгаа залуусын дунд эмх замбараагүй байдал бий болгохыг санаархсан, өдөөн турхирсан, хэн нэгэн мөнгөтэй этгээдийн гар хөл болсон хүмүүс цөөнгүй нь энэ үеэс эхлэн тод болсон юм. However, it soon became evident that among the youth at the demonstrations expressing their views on justice and rightfulness there were some eager to create chaos, instigate strife, or serve as henchmen of certain characters with money.