Magharebia

Mauritania's Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA) on Sunday (March 13th) urged the government to channel resources towards helping newly freed slaves rather than to the fight against the "legacy of slavery", PANA reported. The funds would be used to "ensure the independence and economic empowerment" of former slaves. A 2007 law criminalised slavery in Mauritania. Left without income and rejected by society, however, slaves who are "theoretically free" may have no choice but to return to their masters, the IRA said.