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2009-02-03
Slavery still weighs heavily on Mauritanian society despite ban
By Mohamed Yahya Ould Abdel Wedoud in Nouakchott and Jamel Arfaoui in Tunis – 03/02/09
During a seminar entitled "Discrimination in Inheritance" held in Tunis on January 24th, Mauritanian human rights organisations and activists spoke out against slavery, which they said is still eroding Mauritanian society.
"Slavery is a painful reality in Mauritania," said Bairam Ould Messaoud, head of Mauritania-based organisation SOS Slaves. "Some families still own slaves and take them around houses and farms here in Nouakchott without the government intervening."
Activists also called on the women participating in the seminar to help in any way possible to rid Mauritania of what they called "a burden and problem" in Mauritanian society, especially in the suburban east and south.
![[Jamel Arfaoui] Mauritanian activist Sarah Al Sadeq says the government lacks the manpower to assess the scope of the slavery problem in her country.](/awi/images/2009/02/03/090203Feature2Photo-650_429.jpg)
Although the Mauritanian government outlawed slavery in 1984, Ould Messaoud said the ban failed to overcome traditional powers and was never functional. "Slaves are tied to their masters by intellectual, religious and financial manacles. Unless slaves are financially released, slavery will continue to have the upper hand," he concluded.
In 2006, the government passed a new law that imposes a fine of 200,000 to one million Ouguiya on anyone guilty of involvement in human trafficking.
But even that law has not been enforced on the ground, said Mauritanian Aminatou Bent Mokhtar, President of the Female Breadwinners Association. The authorities, she added, do little to end the suffering of many girls who endure various forms of abuse, including sexual abuse.
Other participants in the seminar were astonished to hear accounts of slavery in Mauritania.
"I am calling on fellow women in Mauritania to take action on the widest possible scale to unravel such practices," said Nabiah Hadoush, an official in the Moroccan Women's Association.
"We in Morocco are ready to support them through our regional and international relations. Why not set up a Maghreb partnership to terminate such practices that violate human rights?" she asked. "This is insulting to all North African citizens. We should never accept it in the 21st century."
Nfesia Iben, member of the steering committee of the Moroccan Association for the Defence of Women's Rights, suggested forming a women's alliance in order to defend victims of human trafficking in Mauritania.
"We must write to the Mauritanian government and human rights organisations… to inform them that what is going on is shameful and we should never be silent about it," Iben added.
According to Mauritanian activist Sarah Al Sadeq, traders of female slaves usually find their victims in poor areas or among peasants who moved to the capital to escape years of drought.
One of the problems activists and organisations face when they address the issue, Al Sadeq said, is the lack of sufficient government manpower to assess the scope of the problem.
"Civil society institutions do not have the financial resources to collect accurate statistics, and authorities hardly pay attention to the problem," Al Sadeq said.
UN figures show that there are nearly 1.2 million children victims of human trafficking around the world; nearly 246 million are engaged in child labour. Human traffickers make around 31 billion dollars annually from the slave trade.
Even when they are released, a lack of education and proper knowledge of the surroundings often limits the freedom of victims of slavery.
"Freed slaves could not be socially independent," said reporter Maryam Bent Mohamed Laghzaf, "since they failed to be financially independent. Actually true slavery is financial slavery, not racial slavery, as some presume. Many masters released slaves a long time ago, but those slaves found themselves in tough economic conditions that led them to wish they could go back to living under their masters."
It is the government's responsibility to provide financial and educational aid for those victims to enable them to start anew, she concluded.
On the other hand, the Mauritanian government insists that slavery is a thing of the past and that what is left is on its way to disappearing.
"The state is presently engaged in fighting remnants of slavery and offering opportunities of equality to all social strata," said human rights commissioner Mohamad Lamain Ould Idad. "The budget allocated by my sector for the project amounts to 1.4 billion Ouguiya."
Ould Idad said he met with groups of enslaved people to hear their experiences. "Some victims tell tragic stories of the painful reality they suffered, having no magic wand to help them come out of it," he said.
Bilal, 50, is one of those victims. He was born in a milieu to a society that did not practice equality or justice, he said.
"My father would take camels to graze all day," he said. "My mother would groom horses. I was devoured by humiliation and mortification throughout my entire childhood, my shackled adulthood and slain dreams. All of that is because of the dark complexion I was born with in this oppressive world."
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POST YOUR COMMENT 9
ousumane 2009-12-17
slavery is still in mauritania
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كوريرا 2009-4-6
Peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon you. Knowledge is necessary. It is denied only by sophistry and Semounia. I think that the news of slavery in Mauritania cannot even be denied by these two groups in addition to those who believe in necessary knowledge which is frequency. My brothers have you ever heard anything about slavery without talking about the slavery of Mauritania??? The answer is no. Both the wise and unwise agree about this I say agree not to say unanimity as a way of speaking. But the matter has reached the level of unanimity which condemns its author by the religious scholars. Do you know how slavery is practiced in this country? They steal and make the sons of the nations stolen unjustly. By God, if repeating the swear by God will show confirmation, I would have repeated my swearing a millions times. If it is a lie may God uncover it before I die. There are families who suffer from this disease which is spread even among the members of the government and ordinary people. You should know, world, that the government lifts the flag of eradicating slavery but at the same time lifts the flag of calling for slavery. What's this contradiction my brothers? The explanation of what I said is that the government has campaigns against slavery focusing on some weak tribes which have no one to defend them. By God, by God, this includes even a minister. I am sure he has slaves at home. They cook for him and clean his clothes. When we talk about these issues, we must be fair. It is fair to say that this plight is spread in all categories of sects and tribes including Sonkia, Hassania, Fellania and Olfia. We can say that the victims of this issue are black people. This is what I know. If you want more, communicate with me.
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أبومحمد 2009-2-14
In reality, the practise of slavery no longer exists in its traditional form. Those who say that it exists are sceptical and cynical who aim to achieve some hidden goal which they cannot uncover. Yes there is suffering, poverty and misery endured by most citizens in different social classes, oppression and injustice are not limited to one social class. The category of blacks includes rich men, executives, formers ministers who contribute now to plundering public monies. They have accumulated huge wealth like other classes on the detriment of poor citizens. This form of illegal richness is in reality the core of the exploitation suffered by the Mauritanian citizen and which should be fought by everyone. If it is eradicated, everyone will live in prosperity because the country has many resources if compared with the number of people. As regard the instigation of sectarian and ethnic feelings, it wasn’t and won’t be a tool of welfare and progress. It only serves the world imperialism which encourages and sponsors such destructive slogans. So beware of following them as some weak and idiot people do.
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Djibril BA 2009-2-12
To our last commenter, who still seems to deny the facts, I ask him to refer to the following ordinance and law: Ordinance No. 81-234 abolishes slavery, saying in Article 2, “Conforming to the shariah, this abolition will result in a compensation in place of having rights.” The compensation is then repealed by Law No. 2007-048 from September 2007, making slavery criminal and punishing acts of slavery. Article 16 of this law says: “Those preceding clauses that are contrary to this law are repealed, particularly Article 2 of Ordinance 81-234 of 9 November 1981.” We now know that this is something that has become intolerable in the modern world and that whereas yesterday it was shameful for the victim, today it is shameful for the masters and the former masters. This does not justify, however, the denial of an injustice, the consequences of which have become an enemy of the people. These classes of society are where we find the must elevate percentages of poor and marginalised people, who often populate our prisons. May god pardon the ignorance of Djibril BA, who is also a child of Mauritania.
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Thats me 2009-2-6
Slavery most certainly does still exist in Mauritania and practices in regards to slavery are very much in place. I'm an American and I've lived in Mauritania for 2 years and have seen first hand slavery at work. Don't get me wrong, I'm not claiming that their are human markets and auctions taking place but slavery is webbed into Mauritanian society. For instance, in the village I live in, Slaves are brought in to butcher the animals and cook the meals for special occasions such as baptisms and weddings. Its easy to tell who is a slave just by asking what their last name is. The cast system is deeply ingrained in Mauritanian culture.
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Djibril BA 2009-2-6
What is being forgotten is that people are working all the time to enrich others without ever having the possibility of building up what is called their bequest. Imagine that your child was stolen or simply kidnapped because you were overtaken in a “jihad”, that all of his descendants continue to work for their masters, that all of their descendants work for these same masters and that your son was never able to work for himself or his descendants. Worse yet, the day one of these descendants decides to leave, he is forced to compensate by giving his descendants to his master, for whom his has always worked, always served without the slighted remuneration. And, even worse, I do not know in the name of what lie that spans history has it been fashioned such that our descendants are convinced that their respect depends on the work they do for these same masters - even to the benefit of their own descendants. What would you feel nowadays? Honestly, I would have wished that your son and his descendants received compensation from his masters. That they have used the holy truth to leave not only your son in ignorance, but his descendents too, that they have used the holy truth to exploit your son and his descendants without leaving them the slightest inheritance is unacceptable. And, who is responsible for the descendants of this ancestor? How does it happen that this descendant is still so ignorant, so marginalized that he is reduced to being and seen by the collective subconscious as less than nothing? This is the product of a Muslim country, we are told. In Mauritania, ridiculousness does not kill.
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Johweyeh Lowenthal 2009-2-4
Slavery is absolutely deplorable. I want to know how I can get involved with the universal abolition of slavery. As a college student in the US, how can I help!? Peace and Blessings, Johweyeh
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صارة 2009-2-4
In the name of God the most gracious the most merciful.
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محمد الحسن 2009-2-4
Let me tell you honestly that the problem of slavery is no longer present in Mauritania. There are just some people who are homeless and no resources who live with other families for some services. Therefore, slavery has never been present in Mauritania at the level promoted by people like the mercenary and hypocrite Braim Ould Messaoud. With his statements, he is just innovating a problem which does not exist. I confirm that there is no slavery in Mauritania. There is just a disparity between tribes like in all societies. A Mauritania writer.
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