Beijing, Feb 13 (NationPress) Despite ongoing digital restrictions imposed by Chinese authorities, the internet has long served as one of the few platforms where Mongolians from China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, also known as Southern Mongolia, could utilize their language, share their music and literature, and connect with each other, as highlighted in a recent report.

Citing findings from PEN America and the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Centre, the report reveals that the Chinese government is actively suppressing Mongolian language and culture in various online environments, systematically dismantling crucial digital communities that foster Mongolian identity.

According to the study titled 'Save Our Mother Tongue', approximately 89 percent of known Mongolian cultural websites have faced censorship or complete shutdown. Significant online communities have also been constrained, including Bainu, the most popular Mongolian-language social media application. Furthermore, the report disclosed a policy referred to as 'One Province, One Newspaper, One Client', allowing state media outlets to create their own applications, effectively sidelining independent platforms established by Mongolian developers,” as detailed in a report by 'Genocide Watch'.

Soyonbo Borjgin, a Southern Mongolian journalist currently in exile in New York, experienced the closure of 'The Inner Mongolia Daily', the publication he worked for, and was subjected to a month-long re-education class. He now writes to expose what he describes as “systematic cultural repression”.

“Since the government has prohibited the use of Mongolian in local schools, the digital realm has become the last bastion for the Mongolian people to express their culture. This indicates that the Chinese government is purposefully eliminating platforms where Mongolians can engage in their language, share music, discuss their history, and connect as a community. Mongolian songs are being removed from music applications, with tracks like 'Let Us Be Mongolian' and 'I Am a Mongolian' disappearing entirely,” the report quoted Borjgin while speaking to Tech24.

“Presently, in my homeland, individuals cannot use Mongolian to engage in any conversation. The entire digital landscape for the Mongolian language has vanished,” he added.

PEN America and the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Centre are now advocating for a unified response from technology firms, governments, and international organizations to protect Mongolian culture online in the region.

“We urge tech and social media companies to implement a cultural rights framework in their platform development, uphold their duty to respect human rights, and collaborate with independent organizations to provide digital support, especially for affected Mongolian communities,” reported Liesl Gerntholtz, Managing Director of the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Centre at PEN America.