A prominent human rights watchdog on Wednesday called on the Mauritanian authorities to cease arrests of activists, journalists and opposition politicians ahead of the upcoming parliamentary, regional and local elections.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th August, 2018) A prominent human rights watchdog on Wednesday called on the Mauritanian authorities to cease arrests of activists, journalists and opposition politicians ahead of the upcoming parliamentary, regional and local elections.
Earlier in August, a prominent opposition figure, an anti-slavery activist and two journalists were detained by the authorities. While two of them had been charged with various offenses, from threats of violence to complicity, the two others remained in custody without charges, Amnesty International said.
"Authorities in Mauritania must immediately put an end to the wave of arrests of journalists, opposition figures and anti-slavery activists in an apparent pre-election crackdown on dissent," the group said in a statement.
One of those detained is Biram Dah Abeid, a prominent opposition politician, who heads Mauritanias Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA). The activist was detained on August 7. Biram informed his associates about the situation on the same day by saying that the police cited some order received "from above," not an official warrant, while detaining him.
Francois Patuel, Amnesty Internationals West Africa researcher, said in the statement that the recent detentions sent "a worrying signal of intimidation, harassment and crackdown on dissenting voices by the Mauritanian authorities."
Slavery is one of the most vital concerns human rights groups voice about the situation in Mauritania. However, the African nations human rights record also includes various types of discrimination, impunity for state-sponsored atrocities, and the authorities intolerance of dissent.
For years, Mauritanian rights activists have been facing restrictions and pressure from the authorities, hindering their attempts of free speech and assembly.
