Kh. Oyuntsetseg, Victim of the Construction and Development Fund Savings and Credit Union said, “We are eight of us here and planning to hold a hunger strike here until our losses are going to be recovered. We are here to force the Government and it will help to discuss about our losses during this Parliamentary session.”

“We believe that the working group is not able to make a real conclusion: because they have not determined properties which were hidden and transferred to unions’ directors’ relatives; big loaners were deleted from the hard disk of unions computers and they did not find people who laundered money from unions,” she added.

Victims of savings and credit unions just started to continue the hunger strike at the Ministry right after they were checked out from hospital. They were under compulsory medical treatment for 21-25 days.

Victims said that they also submitted the petition letters to Prime Minister M. Enhkbold and Ts. Nyamdorj, Parliament speaker, before setting up the strike at the ministry

G. Altansukh, a senior investigator of the Economic criminal division and leader of the working group told MonInfo, “We have been stressing victims to closely cooperate and work with us from the beginning of the establishment of the working group.”

The statement to the government officials claimed the government has a duty to repay the victims.

“You have a duty to recover the losses of victims of savings and loan credit unions and you must influence on the decision,” the petition letter that victims sent to Parliament speaker and Prime Minister of Mongolia on Monday morning read.

“It could have been much more significant if representatives of victims of bankrupt savings and loan credit unions and independent experts were involved in the working group,” said Oyuntsetseg.

However, the working group which was established under the Government has been working since June of this year. Nearly 9,000 citizens have been affected by the 22 bankrupt unions and lost a total of US $55.6 million, according to victim leaders.

G. Altansukh said, “The working group has concluded and impounded every property of all bankrupt savings and loan credit unions and submitted all necessary materials to the offife of the prosecutor.”

“The court will make its decision based on the working group’s conclusion. It will be the court’s business whether to hold an auction to sell impounded properties in order to recover the victims’ losses. And it is unlikely to receive any comments or complaints that are based on suspicion and personal opinions,” he added.

D. Duregjav, a member of the working group and member of the Financial Regulatory Committee commented that a new, separate law is being developed to govern savings and loan credit unions and will be submitted to parliament upon its completion.

Images Copyright Luke Distelhorst