ULAN BATOR - MONGOLIA was on Saturday expected to lift a state of emergency implemented after unprecedented deadly election riots engulfed the capital of Ulan Bator, but residents feared renewed violence.

Five people died in Tuesday's riots over alleged rigged parliamentary elections, and residents of the city expressed concern about the prospect of further unrest.

'Now in my country it is a very important time, and politics are not stable, and if these protests happen again, a lot of people could get hurt or could lose their lives,' said Mr Naraa Baatar, 19.

But in a sign that life in the city was returning to normal, the curfew was pushed back to midnight on Friday, Justice Minister Munkh-Orgil said, and some locals were seen out on the streets enjoying an evening out.

Allegations of fraud in Sunday's elections, in which the former communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) won by a large majority, were however still circulating, heightening concern of further unrest.

Many still believed that the MPRP had stolen votes from the rival Democratic Party - allegations that caused the violence on Tuesday in the first place.

'In my opinion, there will be more protests because the election was unfair and dishonest,' said Bayanbat Ganba, a 21-year-old bank worker in Mongolia's capital.

But a joint declaration signed by conflicting parties on Friday, urging against any further violence, and pledging to resolve their differences peacefully, was expected to alleviate the tension.

Ms Sanjaasuren Oyun, Mongolia's foreign minister, earlier said she thought the declaration would prevent any further violence, although it would not stop politicians from rowing over the disputed elections.

Her view was echoed by some inhabitants of Ulan Bator on Saturday.

'We have a lot of arguments, and a lot of issues to resolve, but I don't think the protests will happen again,' said Mr Tulga Mendee, a retiree who was shocked at the violence he had never previously experienced in 70 years.

Politicians readily confirmed that irregularities and miscounting of votes had taken place in the elections, but pledged in the joint declaration signed on Friday pledged to would resolve the issues through legal and peaceful means.

It was still unclear how many of the 76 parliamentary seats were being disputed, but the law required a minimum of 57 seats for parliament to function normally, according to Oyun.

The violence on Tuesday, which saw the headquarters of the MPRP burnt down, has become recognised as a particularly dark moment in Mongolia's recent history.

The nation shook off seven decades of communist rule in 1990 without a shot being fired, and the first elections were held in 1992.

Since then, despite its struggles with corruption and a growing rich-poor divide, the democratic process in the country of about three million people had proceeded without violence.

While the political tensions of Sunday's elections were the trigger for riots, experts also said economic factors such as high unemployment and the growing rich-poor divide were also important. -- AFP

Mongolian politicians meet in bid to resolve election crisis

ULAN BATOR - MONGOLIA'S top politicians were locked in negotiations Saturday to try to work out their differences after allegations of electoral fraud caused deadly riots in the capital.

The heads of rival political parties were trying to find common ground to prevent any further violence, said Mr Yondon Otgonbayar, secretary general of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) which won the election.

'I sincerely hope that the negotiations will be constructive,' he said.

The talks come ahead of the lifting of a four-day state of emergency - due at midnight on Saturday - imposed on Ulan Bator after five people were killed in the protests on Tuesday.

Mr Otgonbayar, whose party headquarters were gutted in a fire during the riots, said he held similar talks with his counterparts in other political parties earlier on Saturday.

But the secretary general of the rival Democratic Party, which has accused the MPRP of fraud in Sunday's parliamentary elections, failed to turn up, according to Mr Otgonbayar.

'I urge the Democratic Party to come back to the negotiating table,' he said.

'The primary task is to give people quiet and to bring back normalcy, and this is possible only with the cooperation of all political parties, including the Democratic Party.' -- AFP

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