Tsedendash
Basic information
Interviewee ID: 990028
Name: Tsedendash
Parent's name: Baldorj
Ovog: Bodonchuud
Sex: m
Year of Birth: 1931
Ethnicity: Buriad
Additional Information
Education: higher
Notes on education:
Work: retired
Belief: Buddhist
Born in: Dadal sum, Hentii aimag
Lives in: Sühbaatar sum (or part of UB), Ulaanbaatar aimag
Mother's profession: [blank]
Father's profession: [blank]
Themes for this interview are:
(Please click on a theme to see more interviews on that topic)
work
politics / politicians
privatization
travel
environment
Alternative keywords suggested by readers for this interview are: (Please click on a keyword to see more interviews, if any, on that topic)
socialism
dairy farm
squandering
vodka
press censorship
privatization
collectivization
To read a full interview with Tsedendash please click on the Interview ID below.
Summary of Interview 080607B with Tsedendash
In this interview Tserendash tells about some negative aspects of socialism: collectivisation, urbanisation, squandering in his dairy farm, shortage of vodka, and the press censorship. In the dairy farm in Dadal sum where he used to work, there was a practice of pouring out large quantities of milk on the pretext that there was not enough space in the storage facility, despite the fact that ordinary herders were forced to fulfil their milk quota. In the 1970s the shortage of vodka created what is known today as ‘shag’ (vodka sold illegally at a higher price than it actually costs). Tserendash’s story about the press censorship is also interesting. Even books approved for publication could be revised later and banned. For example, a book titled ‘A Millenium Callendar’ by the famous Mongolian writer Damdisüren had to be confiscated from the book shops, for the book was later found out to be promoting feudalist values. Tserendash also tells how collectivisation is connected with urbanisation. During the collectivisation, many herders who donated their livestock to the state left the country-side for Ulaanbaatar and Darhan.
Tserendash also tells that collective farms, apart from possessing livestock, also had large sums in their bank accounts. During the privatisation, ordinary herders received only livestock, whilst managers embezzled the money.
