IRA Members imprisoned in Rosso

November 11, 2014 IRA-USA Press Release

IRA Members imprisoned in Rosso

Soldiers surrounded an anti-slavery protest in Rosso, Mauritania this morning, firing tear-gas cannisters and then moving in to arrest Biram Dah Abeid and eight other anti-slavery activists. Biram Dah Abeid is the president of the Initiative for the Resurgent Abolitionist Movement of Mauritania (IRA – Mauritania). He has won numerous human rights awards for his work fighting slavery in his home country, including the Human Rights prize awarded by the United Nations.

Mauritania, which suffers from hereditary slavery, is lthe country with the highest prevalence of slavery in the world according to the Global Slavery Index. The authoritarian government, headed by President Aziz, has signed a “road map” written by a United Nations expert, to end slavery in Mauritania. However, this public stance against slavery has not produced any real result in the many towns, villages, and farms where slavery thrives. The arrest and imprisonment of anti-slavery activists demonstrates the deep resistance to ending the slave culture.

In order to generate resistance to slavery, IRA – Mauritania organized a Caravan to tour the small agricultural towns and villages, spreading the word against slavery and raising the consciousness of villagers susceptible to exploitation. Seizure of land from Haratine and Negro African Mauritanians is a particular problem in these areas. This caravan started on Friday, November 7th, and generated enthusiastic crowds, speeches and teaching opportunities in each village.

The governor of Rosso, however, issued a decree on November 10th, banning the Caravan from entering that city. It is unclear what the legal grounds were for issuing this ban. The following morning the Caravan was surrounded by soldiers with rifles and tear gas. Biram and his colleagues were arrested and imprisoned.

There are now fifteen IRA members in jail in Mauritania. The nine imprisoned in Rosso join four arrested in late October in Nouakchott following an incident where an Imam used Friday prayer services to denounce Biram and his followers as apostates and atheists. Apostasy is a capital offense in Mauritania. Another conservative religious figure called for the death of Biram on a national television show. These recently incarcerated join their two other colleagues, held since early 2014.

Those arrested in Rosso are Biram Dah ABEID, president of IRA – Mauritania,
Brahim Bilal RAMDHANE vice president of IRA-Mauritanie, Khattri RAHEL président du Comité de la paix of IRA-Mauritanie, Cheikh VALL militant récemment libéré, Dah BOUSHAB président de la section Arafat (quartier de Nouakchott) de IRA, Abidine MATALLA Membre du Bureau Exécutif de IRA-Mauritanie, Samba DIAGANA membre du Comité de la paix, Hassane MAHMOUD membre du Comité de la paix, and Djiby SOW president the non-profit, Kawtal.

Those recently arrested in Nouakchott are Brahim Jiddou, Baba Traoré, Yacoub Inalla, Sabbar Houssein, and those imprisoned since early 2014 are Hanana Mboyrick and Boubacar Yatma.