NEW BOOK: KHALKHA AND OIRAT’S CODE OF LAW RELEASED

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ State Honored Cultural Figure and translator Ts.Surenjav and lawyer P.Tsagaan revised a classical work of the Mongolian law named ‘Khalkha and Oirat’s code of law’ and published it to introduce to the public on the occasion of the Constitution Day of Mongolia, which is marked on January 13. The Khalkha and Oirat’s code of law is an important historical source which contains Mongolians’ long history of unwritten and written code of laws. In the fall of 1640, Khans of Oirats and the Khalkhas, and heads of religious institutions convened and established the law code in Tarbagatai Mountains. The Khalkha and Oirat’s code of law includes legislations such as civil and criminal codes and criminal procedure code. It is also possible to learn about how punishment policy was distinguished by light and heavy according to social status and wealth and there was no jail or prison punishment. Moreover national great unity in the face of a growing threat in the south can be seen in the code of law. A copy of Khalkha-Oirat’s code of law written in oral Torguud dialect in tod script was found in 1771 from a Torguud family who moved back from Volga River. Scholars studied the copy, comparing it with several texts and printed out with footnotes. However translator Ts.Surenjav found mistakes from it in some explanations and meaning of words, as the copy had been in torguud dialect and in Tod script. Therefore Mr.Surenjav clarified and fixed the mistakes in the new edition and put appropriate explanations of Torgut dialect words. E.Altanzul