Mauritanian human rights organizations have called on the authorities to respect the rights of migrants following a large-scale inspection campaign launched by the government in recent days, targeting foreigners, particularly nationals of sub-Saharan African countries, in the capital, Nouakchott.
In a joint statement, the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA), the Mauritanian Association for Citizenship and Development (AMCD), and the Standing Citizens Movement (CCD) expressed concern over the arrest and forced deportation of hundreds of migrants. They asserted that some of them were subjected to “inhumane” treatment, deprived of basic rights such as food and legal protection before being deported through the Rosso and Gogui border crossings.
The statement emphasized that while Mauritania has the sovereign right to control its borders, it remains bound by international conventions it has signed, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which guarantee the rights of migrants regardless of their legal status.
The organizations urged the government to take urgent measures to protect migrants, ensure their physical and psychological well-being, and respect their rights during deportation operations. They also called for facilitating the legalization of status for those wishing to obtain residency documents that would allow them to live with dignity.
The signatories further called on all parties to exercise restraint, stressing the importance of the historical ties that unite the region’s peoples.
