Despite international outcry against slavery across the globe, Mauritanian authorities continue their crackdown on anti-slavery activists with the arrest recently of abolitionist Biram Ould Abeid who was interrogated by authorities following three days of demonstrations led by the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA). In a recent report issued in February 2018, Human Rights Watch (HRW) deplored that anti-slavery groups endure police repression in Mauritania. Mauritania outlawed slavery only in 1981, criminalized the practice in 2007, and created specialized courts in 2015 to prosecute slavery cases. Authorities claim success in eradicating slavery and say that today the challenge is to address the lasting socioeconomic effects, or “legacy” of slavery. The Human Rights Watch report noted that both Mauritania’s main anti-slavery non-governmental associations, IRA and , challenge the official discourse by affirming that slavery continues to be practiced, though differ in their approaches.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 03, 2018 16:30 UTC