Dear members,
Assalamu Alaikum. Please read this item on Mauritanian society from
islamonline.net.
Shah Abdul Hannan
Analysis
Mauritanian Society and Politics
One Ethnicity, One Vote
By Abou Cisse and Abdelrahman Rashdan
In Mauritania, keeping yourself in a tribe is keeping
yourself alive.(Reuters Photo)
A country that resides deep in the far northwest of Africa,
Mauritania is described as nomadic, underdeveloped, and poor. Its rural people
open tapes to find water mixed with sand. Out of every thousand newly born
children, 87 die. Only 41 percent of the whole population can read and write.
And nearly 90 percent of the people depend on the cattle and agriculture for
their livelihood.
This country has been gaining a lot of attention lately; what
makes it special is its unique political history and experience.
"A democratic model both for Africa and the Arab World,"
became Mauritania. Formerly, it was a typical Middle Eastern state where
leaders autocratically rule and military coups step in every now and then to
shake up realities.
What makes Mauritania's political experience unique is that
it came out of a complexly diverse society that naturally would not allow one
group to rule.
Keeping yourself in a tribe is keeping yourself alive.
Where the Haratine Is a Slave
In spite of being a predominantly Muslim state - with almost
a 100-percent Muslim population -, Mauritania is fractured among ethnic groups.
Blacks, whites, and mixed are ethnically distinct in Mauritania, to the extent
that makes slavery one of the notorious things Mauritania is known for.
Officially, in 1980 slavery has been banned in Mauritania;
however, because of the tribal structure of the society, it still exists. Moors
enslave the Haratines - or "black Moors" who are of Bambara origin, the largest
ethnic tribe in Mali -, force their stolen girls into marriage, and let them
live among them. Haratines live peacefully, though, in the white Arab Moorish
society that they are considered part of. Jovial to strangers, gifted in art
and poetry, skilled in commerce, and the biggest ethnic group in the Islamic
Empire of Sands, Moors efficiently occupy the greatest role in the political
and social activities of the country.
Haratines live peacefully, though, in the white Arab
Moorish society which they are considered part of.
As hospitable as the Moors are the Pulaars (also called the
Fula). Gorgol - between Mauritania and Senegal - is their region, aversion of
brawl is their attitude, and education and Islamic science are their fields of
excellence. Their main bone of contingent is that their language, Pulaar, and
culture should occupy similar role to that of the Arabs, including the Moors.
One Ethnicity, One Vote
Moors, Haratine, Pulaar, Sonike, and Wolof all mix to form
the society of the Islamic Empire of Sands. Politics sneak into the social
structure of such a society that has been living under dictatorship for the
last 50 years (after more than 30 years of foreign occupation).
In Mauritania, it is "one ethnicity, one vote" rather than
"one person, one vote." Kinship and ethnic affiliation have been playing a
major role in the recent democratic presidential elections.
The Mauritanian presidential elections are a duel between
ethnic groups, though politically, a secret struggle against Moorish
domination. Since it declared independence from France in 1960, Mauritania has
been dominated by Moors. Pulaars (the black population) have been always
clamoring for equality in all spheres of society, yet they refuse to intermarry
with Moors.
The long time that the Moors have spent in control of
Mauritanian politics offers them a political leverage over the other ethnic
groups.
Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi - the newly elected
Mauritanian president - has been able to benefit from many factors. He is a
Moor, rich, influential, and very well-connected. Abdallahi ran the 2007
presidential elections while being fully backed by the former leaders and
ministers.
Abdallahi's Presidential Desk
In Mauritania, it is "one ethnicity, one vote" rather
than "one person, one vote."
In a country considered to be one of the poorest in the
world, kinship and connections do mean life. Access to resources, control over
wealth, and leadership towards development, all do reside in the hands of those
who know how to influence people. A poor Pular would have no where else to
reside when in need of shelter or food other than his tribe leader. Keeping
yourself in a tribe and under the leadership of someone is keeping yourself
alive.
Diamonds, gold, oil, iron ore, and fish are among the
blessings that Mauritania has; yet, it is infested with corruption.
Mauritanians need a proper way of living, they need to benefit from the
treasures they have under their feet, yet their ethnic and tribe affiliations
may muddle their choice of who is better for leading the Islamic Empire of
Sands.
Big exclamation marks await Abdallahi on his presidential
desk: Will you keep your country's normalized relations with Israel unchanged?
Will you look east and get more friends from the forgotten Muslim World? Will
you allow the freedom of expression for the ever-quenched opposition? Will
Mauritania stay "democratic" like its elections?
Sources:
Fletcher, Pascal and Ibrahima Sylla. "Economist Abdallahi
Elected As Mauritania President." The Washington Post. 26 March 2007. Last
accessed 3 April 2007.
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Abou Cisse, a Soninke by tribe, was born in 1950 in Coumba
N'dao, southern Mauritania. He is a journalist, poet, and writer and is
currently the crime editor of the Mauritanian daily French newspaper L'
Authentique. Click here to reach him.
Abdelrahman Rashdan is assistant editor and staff writer for
the Muslim Affairs section of IslamOnline.net. A graduate of the American
University in Cairo, he holds a BA in political science with a specialization
in political economy and international relations. Click here to reach him.
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