Mauritanians rally for civic change

Mauritanians from all walks of life gather in Nouakchott to voice grievances.

By Raby Ould Idoumou for Magharebia in Nouakchott – 02/12/11

[AFP/ Seyllou] Mauritania's pro-reform movement is taking to the streets again after a six-month pause.

They came from different backgrounds with varied grievances but a shared goal: to reclaim their rights. Hundreds of Mauritanians gathered in central Nouakchott last week-end to press for reforms.

Jobless university graduates, part-time workers, returning refugees, campaigners, female employees, abolitionists and residents of hardscrabble provinces without electricity access were among participants in the "Grievance Festival".

The November 26th event was co-ordinated by the February 25th Movement. The youth-led movement, inspired by the Arab Spring, organised a series of pro-reform marches across the country this year, which drew thousands of supporters.

"This activity is part of a campaign entitled 'We'll Return' through which we are trying to return to the street after our marches stopped on May 25th," said movement member Deda Ould Sheikh Ibrahim. "We want more reforms, and we are organising peaceful marches to achieve that. This time, we tried to shed light on certain categories of society that suffered from the procrastination of government officials, to present their issues and make their voices heard."

Demonstrators at al-Thanawiya al-Arabiya Square carried banners emblazoned with slogans representing 20 participating groups. The festival was supposed to be held on the Mauritanian Army Day on November 25th, but was postponed for organisational reasons.

"We represent a group of citizens totalling 7,000 Mauritanians who returned from Libya to escape from death and homelessness after we were trapped in the middle between revolutionaries and Kadhafi's brigades," said Office of Libya Returnees chief Ali Ould Ahmed Salem, who took part in the event.

Mauritanians returning from Libya suffer from "tough psychological conditions" and job shortages, he lamented.

"The government has pledged to provide assistance and to integrate professionals," Ould Ahmed Sale, said "however, this has not happened although we submitted the files of those returnees to the competent authorities."

"The Mauritanian President's recent statements, in which he said that the citizens who have returned from Libya must understand that the country is going through a tough period and won't be able to meet all of their needs at once, have disappointed them and made them lose hope about the possibility of having their demands met," he added.

A group calling for the protection of the disabled had their say in the festival.

"We want the government to seriously deal with the need to issue decisions that affect our lives," said Sayed Ould Atoual Amr, a disabled married man with a child. "We are not happy that all government buildings that were built after the issue of 2006 law on the disabled didn't have a design that would allow us to enter them."

"Public buildings must feature special entrances through which wheelchair people can access them," he added. "It would be sad to stand at the door waiting for someone to come and help us enter officials' offices. We can do everything by ourselves, but just give us the opportunity. Just think about us when you decide to build a department; think about our lives when you issue your decisions."

Analyst Riadh Ould Ahmed El Hadi said that the problem of accumulated grievances in Mauritania is due to the "fact that each group is separately struggling for a right that it considers itself to be entitled to".

"However, attempts to unify efforts in peaceful protests usually force regimes to respond to demands, deal seriously with them and present more positive solutions," he added.

"Unity is strength, and we're trying to make the voice of suffering be heard in this political event. 'One stand for all' is a slogan that enables us to present our cases and attract attention to our condition," the February 25th Movement said in a press statement.

via magharebia.com

Posted via email from lissping