A Mongolian opposition lawmaker was beaten to death, his party announced on Sunday, ahead of legislative elections this month.
The victim was a Democratic Party (DP) member and governor of Sant Sum in central Mongolia, according to a party statement.
The man was killed on Saturday, according to the party’s statement.
Local media referred to the individual as B. Bayanmunkh, while his party’s statement identified him as “BB”.
The DP expressed sadness that “a star of democracy…has lost his life at the hands of others.”
“At around 10:00 pm… B was killed by others during a meeting of five members of the MPP in the first round of parliamentary elections,” a party statement read, referring to the acronym of the ruling Mongolian People’s Party.
Mongolia, which is three times the size of France but has a population of 3.5 million, is scheduled to hold parliamentary elections on June 28.
Violence during election campaigns is uncommon in the democratic country situated between China and Russia, where all sides of the political spectrum are reflected in the media and heated debate is usual.
However, critics claim that the country’s rule of law is deteriorating, and that the government is attempting to mitigate criticism of its anti-corruption record.
“This election is going on under all possible pressures, such as heavy government pressure and spying,” the DP statement added.