What Are the Reasons for the Escalation of the Mauritanian Opposition Against President Ghazwani?

On August 16, 2021, Mauritanian opposition parties called on President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani for a national dialogue to address the difficulties and crises in the country.

This came in a statement issued by 7 parties on the sidelines of a press conference, in which they reached the point of give the president two options; "Either solve the citizens' problems or resign."

This was not the first time that the opposition called for a national dialogue, but its tone in the last statement showed a kind of escalation, raising questions about the reasons for this and the demands of those parties.

 

Opposition Demands

In their statement, the parties stressed the need to adopt a serious policy to "fight bribery and corruption," and called on the government to "reduce the suffering of citizens by implementing price controls on basic materials (there have recently been increases in the prices of some of them)."

In the press conference that took place in Nouakchott, the parties saw that "after two years of Ould Cheikh El-Ghazouani's rule and his pledge to hold a national dialogue to reach permanent solutions to the country's problems without red lines, the hope for dialogue has been dashed with the recent statements made by the President of the Republic."

The head of the People's Progressive Alliance Party, Massoud Ould Belkheir, called on President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El-Ghazouani to reform immediately and solve the country's problems or resign.

He added that Ould El-Ghazouani "came or was brought to solve Mauritania's problems, and he lived for ten years with a regime that he knows, after all this he came to say: Mauritania does not live in a crisis."

He indicated that Mauritania "is experiencing several crises at the tribal, regional and verbal levels," noting that "the president may wait for the Mauritanians to fight."

In the statement, the parties indicated that they "noted, for some time, a gradual restriction and rejection of all forms of protest and confronting it with the use of force and repression."

It demanded the strict application of all laws in order to combat slavery and all its social practices.

The opposition parties also called on the government to alleviate the suffering of citizens by controlling the prices of basic materials, providing security for citizens and effectively fighting crime.

They pointed out that after two years of exercising power, "it must be admitted that hope has been dashed and that the desired break with the practices of the past was not up to expectations."

The statement added that "the multi-dimensional crisis facing the country still exists."

It added that the country is still "vulnerable to major challenges, foremost of which is the problem of national unity, which is still a mere wish due to the policies of discrimination and exclusion on the basis of ethnic affiliation."

The "National Rally for Reform and Development" party with an Islamic reference and the most representative opposition party in the Mauritanian parliament, the People's Progressive Alliance Party, the "Al-Ruk" party led by human rights activist Biram Ould Dah Ould Abeid, and the "Future" party participated in the press conference.

The rest of the opposition parties, namely the Democratic Forces Bloc, the Union of Forces for Progress and the "Sawab" party, were absent from the press conference, and contented themselves with signing the statement. These parties are in contact with the government in order to participate in the upcoming consultation.

 

Causes of Escalation

In April 2021, the National Rally for Reform and Development party called for “organizing a political dialogue that consolidates gains, corrects imbalances, and lays the foundations for a true national partnership.” 

It stressed "the priority of everyone's willingness to sacrifice everything possible to preserve the unity of this country, achieve justice in it, ensure civil peace and social harmony, and spread brotherhood and love."

It emphasized that the fight against corruption is at the forefront of the urgent necessities, pointing out "its recognition of the extent of the damage caused by it, and because it represents an essential focal point in a comprehensive reform path that requires the partnership of all. It requires strictness that combats all corruption with its past and present, and lays the foundations for a wise governance that eradicates it and prevents its regeneration.”

In July 2021, Ould El-Ghazouani, in an interview with the French channel “France 24”, ruled out any political dialogue with the opposition, stressing that “when we talk about the national dialogue, we tend to think that we are in the midst of a crisis, and this is not the case in Mauritania.” 

Salek Ould Sidi Mahmoud, vice president of the "National Rally for Reform and Development" party in Mauritania, said the opposition had given President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El-Ghazouani "enough opportunities."

But the outcome after two years of his rule was "bad", and therefore decided to "pressure the regime", through "public peaceful activities", to push it to carry out reforms, according to what he said in an interview with the Turkish "Anadolu Agency" in June 2021.

On February 24, 2021, political parties engaged in a dialogue with the government, after a meeting held by all the parties represented in Parliament (12 opposition and loyalist parties).

Absent from the meeting was the "Tawassoul" party, which has been adhering to the call for an inclusive national dialogue since the previous era, until it made it one of its constants, and went on to say: "It will not accept few parties to control the course of preparations for any prospective political dialogue in Mauritania."

If the opposition parties decided in 2019 to declare a truce, with Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani taking over, the party continued on the same line, calling for what it calls a “consensual transformation.”

Months after his election in June 2019, Ould El-Ghazouani was keen to receive most of the leaders of the opposition parties, most notably the head of the National Rally for Reform and Development, Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Sidi.

But the party quickly considered, in its November statement, that “the positive spirit that dominated the opposition discourse during 2020 did not find on the other side (the authority) the necessary awareness of the challenges of the stage, and a willingness to use the moment to lay the foundations for historical national action.”

The statement said: A year of President Ould El-Ghazouani's rule was "improvised in dealing with the Corona pandemic, and the significant slowdown in implementing the recommendations of the Parliamentary Investigation Committee regarding corruption files, the appointment of those included in corruption files to government positions, and the failure to respond to calls for political dialogue."

 

Old System Violations Re-Emergence

Ould Cheikh El-Ghazouani was elected president of the country in July 2019, and officially assumed his duties on August 3 of the same year, following a political crisis in the country since the overthrow of former President Maaouya Ould Taya.

Ghazouani began a five-year presidential term, winning 52 percent of the elections held on June 22 of that year.

Months after his election, Al-Ghazouani was keen to receive most of the leaders of the opposition parties, including the head of the "People's Progressive Alliance" party, Massoud Ould Belkheir. This was followed by a political calm that continued throughout his term in office.

However, some political party leaders confirmed in previous statements that the deadline given by the opposition to the regime of President Ould Ghazouani was objective and necessary at the beginning of his accession to power, but it took too long and led to the deterioration of the situation.

In November 2020, the Tawasul party called for "an end to the practices of exclusion and marginalization of the opposition, and to stop harassing its leaders and businessmen," calling for "deterrent penalties for those who are proven to be involved in corruption cases."

The party considered that "the former president's failure to declare his property was one of the most important reasons that provided the most dangerous and appropriate environments for the spread of corruption and the impunity of its practitioners."

Political analyst Ahmed Ould Mohamed al-Mustafa said in a previous statement to Anadolu Agency: "The opposition is emerging from a decade of systematic targeting during the era of the former president, through arrests, harassment, dismissals and media demonization."

"But the growing state of discontent and frustration with the actions of the new regime, especially in the fight against corruption and getting rid of its symbols, in addition to favoritism in government appointments, made the opposition discourse re-emerge," he said.