People in Inner Mongolia are fighting to preserve their language and culture. (Photo: YouTube)
Ethnic Mongolians in Inner Mongolia are facing a fight to preserve their mother tongue and pastoral culture as China aims to assimilate the local population through a common language in an autonomous region of the vast country.
Protests started in Inner Mongolia over the Chinese government’s new education policy this year, with an emphasis on the use of Mandarin Chinese in local schools that teach in the Mongolian language.
Unrest over the new policy, unveiled at the beginning of the September semester, is spreading to other parts of Asia where Mongolians live in large numbers.
Mongolians staged a protest in Japan on Nov. 24 during a visit by Wang Yi, China's foreign minister, to the country. They called on the Chinese Communist Party to reverse its policy.
