Co-funded by the Internal Security Fund of the European Union LET4CAP Law Enforcement Training for Capacity Building MAURITANIA Downloadable Country Booklet DL. 2.5 (Version 1.1) 1 Dissemination level: PU Let4Cap Grant Contract no.: HOME/ 2015/ISFP/AG/LETX/8753 Start date: 01/11/2016 Duration: 33 months Dissemination Level PU: Public X PP: Restricted to other programme participants (including the Commission) RE: Restricted to a group specified by the consortium (including the Commission) Revision history Rev. Date Author Notes 1.0 18/05/2018 Ce.S.I. Overall structure and first draft 1.1 30/11/2018 Ce.S.I. Final version LET4CAP_WorkpackageNumber 2 Deliverable_2.5 VER WorkpackageNumber 2 Deliverable Deliverable 2.5 Downloadable country booklets VER 1.1 2 Mauritania Country Information Package 3 This Country Information Package has been prepared by Alessandra Giada Dibenedetto Ce.S.I. Centre for International Studies Within the framework of LET4CAP and with the financial support to the Internal Security Fund of the EU LET4CAP aims to contribute to more consistent and efficient assistance in law enforcement capacity building to third countries. The Project consists in the design and provision of training interventions drawn on the experience of the partners and fine-tuned after a piloting and consolidation phase. © 2018 by LET4CAP…. All rights reserved. 4 Table of contents 1. Country Profile 1.1 Country in Brief 1.2 Modern and Contemporary History of Mauritania 1.3 Geography 1.4 Territorial and Administrative Units 1.5 Population 1.6 Ethnic Groups, Languages, Religion 1.7 Health 1.8 Education and Literacy 1.9 Country Economy 2. Political and Security Context 2.1 The Constitution of Mauritania 2.2 Elections 2.3 Political Parties 2.4 Key Political Leaders 2.5 Media Landscape and Civil Society 2.6 Security Sector 3. Law Enforcement Structures and Actors 3.1 The Police 3.2 Other Security Forces 3.3 The Judiciary 4. Migrations and Human Rights issues 4.1 Internal and International Migration 4.2 Human Rights Situation 5. The UN and Mauritania 5.1 Mauritania in the UN 6. The EU - Mauritania Relations 6.1 Mauritania and the EU 7. Other regional organisations and Mauritania 7.1 Mauritania’s membership to regional organisations 7.2 The African Union and Mauritania 7.3 The Arab League and Mauritania 8. Other Practical Info 8.1 Local Customs Cultural Awareness 8.2 Medical Travel Recommendations for Mauritania 8.3 Other Travel Info 8.4 Radio Transmissions 9. Useful contacts Sources Bibliography 5 1. Country Profile 6 1.1 Country in Brief Formal Name: Islamic Republic of Mauritania Area (sq km): 1,030,000 km2 Previous formal names: Mauretania, French West Africa Capital City: Nouakchott Population: 4,301,018 Independence: from France, 28 November 1960 Term for Citizens: Mauritanian 7 1.2 Modern and Contemporary History of Mauritania Early History After World War II, Mauritania was involved in a number of Given its geographical location next to the Atlantic coast and at reforms of the French colonial system in favour of administrative the western edge of the desert, Mauritania experienced many decentralization and internal autonomy. The political crisis in waves of migrants and conquerors. In the classical antiquity, the France gave birth to the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and to a country we know nowadays was a dry savannah area where new constitution. This new constitution, which was also adopted independent tribes (like the Pharusii and the Perorsi) lived a by Mauritanians in a referendum, provided for a French seminomadic life. Also Romans did explorations in the territory Community whose members would be autonomous republics. and their principal activity was commerce. Nonetheless, Mauritania decided to follow the wave of nationalism At the beginning of the 3rd century Berbers moved to the that was spreading in the African continent. Hence, in October southern part of the country; while in the 8th century Arabs 1958 the Islamic Republic of Mauritania was proclaimed and the conquered the western Maghreb and slowly entered the territory Territorial Assembly changed its name to the Constituent of Mauritania. The growing Arab presence pushed the Berbers Assembly and initiated work to draft a national constitution. Once to the south of the country, where its black inhabitants were the document was adopted, Mauritania declared its independence forced out. In the 9th century the Sanhadjia Confederation on 28 November 1960. attained political influence in the Adrar and Hodh regions. Hence, until the end of the 10th century, the Sanhadjia Post-independence period Confederation was a decentralized polity based on two different As the country gained independence, the capital city Nouakchott groups, the Berbers and the Muslim, and commerce advanced in was founded in a small colonial village (the Ksar), while the rest of the country. By the 11th century, Islam had spread in the the population (90%) remained nomadic. Moreover, large numbers Western Sahara given the influence of Berber and Arab traders, of ethnic Sub-Saharan Africans entered Mauritania and moved into and Arab migrants that occasionally reached the territory. In the the area north of the Senegal River. The small political elite that same period, however, the Almoravids conquered the area and guided the movement for independence was divided over whether started a process of divulgation of an austere form of Islam from the country should be oriented toward Senegal and the French- the Sahara through North Africa. The Almoravid Empire, at that speaking Africa or toward the Arab Morocco and the rest of the time, controlled a vast territory stretching from Spain to Senegal. Arab world. Such dilemma was complicated by the fact that King The main commercial routes that connected the empires in Hassan II of Morocco temporarily occupied areas of Mauritania Morocco with the south passed through Mauritania. In the mid- during the 1960s. Despite those differences, party leaders 17th century a 30 years long conflict erupted: the “Char Bouba recognised the need to ensure the establishment of a strong, stable war”. It was fought between the Sanhadja Berber tribes (the and independent government that was also able to represent the confederation that played a key role in the formation of the regional and ethnic diversity of the country. With this end, many Almoravid dynasty) and the Maqil Arab immigrant tribes, put aside their differences and worked together to achieve this goal. foremost of which was the Beni Hassan. The conflict resulted in In fact, in the elections held in August 1961, Moktar Ould Daddah the defeat of the Berber tribes, hence the dominance of the Arab won thanks to the support of the Mauritanian National Renaissance tribes and the arabization of Mauritania and Western Sahara. Party (Nahda) and the Mauritanian National Union. President The Char Bouba war became a reference point for deciding the Daddah was able to gain the support of numerous opposition political and social status of the southern Sahara. parties as he demonstrated his willingness to include in his government those who had opposed him. The political direction European intervention and French colonization under Ould Daddah was one of cautious balance between the In 1442 Portuguese marines rounded Cape Blanco and in 1448 country’s African and Arab roots. The new government formed in founded the fort of Arguin from where they derived gold, gum September 1961, in fact, included representative of both Nahda Arabic and slaves. Spanish, Dutch, English and French all and the Mauritanian National Union in key ministries. A few competed to access this trade, and with the European treaties in the months later, the governmental coalition was formalized with the early 19th century much of the Saharan coast was ceded to the consolidation of the main political parties into the Mauritanian French. The history of French colonial policy in Mauritania is People’s Party (PPM), then recognised as the sole legal party. In linked to that of the other French possessions in West Africa, 1964 the PPM proclaimed Mauritania a one-party State and carried Senegal in particular, on which Mauritania was politically, out a foreign policy of non-alignment with France. The political administratively and economically dependent. The French colonial system became increasingly centralized in the hands of the PPM policy in the country was of association and indirect rule: colonial and started to clash with the highly diverse population. In administrators heavily relied on Islamic religious leaders and the particular, tensions started to emerge among the southern black traditional warrior groups to maintain their rule. Furthermore, not population, as it feared Arab domination. These fears found too many efforts were made to develop and sustain the economy of ground in the 1966 when both Arabic and French became the the country. During the colonial period, the population remained official languages. The following years were characterised by nomadic, but sedentary black Africans (whose ancestors had been strikes and demonstrations: students and trade unionists were expelled centuries earlier by the Moors) began to trickle back into complaining about linguistic and racial issues. The demonstrations southern Mauritania. were harshly repressed by the government, which had banned 8 discussions on racial problems. Further tensions erupted among Mauritania also received help from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Abu black Maures as they were still considered part of the slave class, Dhabi. Nonetheless, the country was not able to prevent the despite slavery had been outlawed by both the French and Polisatio from bombarding Nouakchott again in July 1977. The Mauritanian constitutions. event clearly shacked Daddah who reorganized the army and the In 1969, after Morocco officially recognised the State of government and appointed a military officer as Minister of Mauritania, the government started to purse a more radical political Defence.