June 30, 2026
UN and Mauritania flags © hapelinium, licensed under Shutterstock
On January 20, 2026, Mauritania was examined before the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) during the country’s fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR). Ahead of the review, MENA Rights Group and the Alliance of Orphans of Mauritania submitted a joint shadow report, highlighting key concerns on violations of freedom of expression, the lack of accountability for violations committed during the Passif humanitaire, and the abuse of counter-terrorism legislation. The report was circulated among reviewing UN Member States.
On April 15, 2026, Mauritania informed the Council of its position on the 271 recommendations it had received. Of these, 229 were accepted, 39 were noted, and 3 were partially accepted and partially noted. The outcome of the UPR was formally adopted on June 30 by the HRC.
Right to freedom of opinion and expression
Mauritania accepted all recommendations related to the protection of freedom of expression, including commitments to reform provisions of the Criminal Code, protect human rights defenders from arbitrary arrest and detention, foster a safe and enabling environment for civil society and media actors, and ensure open and secure access to the internet, including during electoral periods. The authorities also accepted a recommendation from Mexico calling for the decriminalisation of defamation.
However, during the UPR, the delegation had stated that Mauritania maintains “defamation laws to preserve social cohesion and security.” This position appears difficult to reconcile with the acceptance of recommendations aimed at decriminalising defamation and preventing the criminalisation of peaceful expression.
Furthermore, the authorities’ acceptance of recommendations on the protection of human rights defenders and journalists, and on ending arbitrary detention, is at odds with recent developments. Just weeks before Mauritania’s response to the UPR, anti-slavery MPs Mariem Dieng and Ghame Salem were arrested after speaking out against the detention of anti-slavery activists, including journalist Warda Ahmed Souleymane. On May 4, 2026, both women were sentenced to four years’ imprisonment for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression.
These commitments are therefore welcome in principle, but their credibility is largely undermined by recent events. MENA Rights Group will continue to closely monitor whether accepted recommendations are translated into concrete legislative reforms upholding freedom of expression, as well as tangible measures, including the release of all detained human rights defenders and journalists.
Right to truth and fight against impunity
Mauritania only noted – meaning it will take no steps to implement –, Belgium’s recommendation to repeal Law No. 93-23 of 1993 on amnesty and create an independent justice and reconciliation mechanism with the mandate to investigate crimes of the past. In its justification, the government stated that it favours a “comprehensive and consensus-based resolution” of the Passif humanitaire through national reconciliation, and that calling into question “the legal framework that has made it possible to initiate the process of national healing should be avoided.” Ahead of the review, the United Kingdom had questioned what concrete steps the government would take to address impunity and ensure access to truth, justice, and reparations for victims and their families. These questions were not addressed during the review, nor in the written responses provided by the authorities.
As outlined in our shadow report, Law No. 93-23 grants amnesty to members of the security forces for offences committed between January 1989 and April 1992 and effectively precludes any criminal investigation or prosecution. These offences include the grave human rights violations committed during the Passif humanitaire, the period between the mid-1980s and early 1990s during which large segments of the Afro-Mauritanian population were subjected to summary executions, torture, enforced disappearances, forced expulsions to Senegal and Mali, and land expropriations. The UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances has itself expressed concern about Law No. 93-23, noting that it may shield perpetrators of enforced disappearance from accountability and that individuals suspected of serious violations allegedly continue to hold public office in Mauritania.
MENA Rights Group therefore urges Mauritania to repeal the 1993 Amnesty Law and establish an independent truth and reconciliation mechanism with the mandate to investigate all violations committed during the Passif humanitaire.
Torture and arbitrary detention
Mauritania accepted a broad set of recommendations on torture and ill-treatment, including to strengthen safeguards against torture and ensure prompt access to legal counsel and independent medical examination from the outset of deprivation of liberty. However, no Member State made a specific recommendation on amending the country’s counter-terrorism legislation, leaving a significant gap. As outlined in our shadow report, individuals accused of terrorism-related offences may be held in police custody for up to 45 days without being brought before a judge and without access to legal counsel.
Since formally accepting these recommendations, Mauritania has already fallen short of implementing them, as illustrated by the cases of MPs Mariem Dieng and Ghame Salem. Both women were forcibly disappeared for approximately ten days following their arrest. Throughout their detention, and up to the time of writing two months later, they have been denied private access to legal counsel, meeting their lawyers only in court. Ghame Salem was hospitalised twice following ill-treatment by inmates, without intervention from prison authorities. Mariem Dieng remains held in complete isolation at the Ecole de Police facility, a centre designed for political opponents, with her five-month-old baby as the only other detainee present.
MENA Rights Group calls on Mauritania to ensure that its accepted commitments on torture, ill-treatment and detention are effectively implemented in practice, starting with the immediate release of both Dieng and Salem.
Slavery and discrimination
Mauritania accepted a wide range of recommendations on combating slavery and descent-based discrimination. However, authorities merely noted the recommendation from the Congo to effectively combat discrimination against Haratine women, stating that it “expresses its reservation regarding the term ‘Haratine women,’ as there is no distinction based on sex with regard to the realisation of rights.” The authorities also only “noted” recommendations calling for the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
Moreover, the arbitrary detention of MPs Mariem Dieng and Ghame Salem, as well as journalist Warda Ahmed Souleymane, highlights the intersecting forms of discrimination faced by Haratine women in the country. Mariem Dieng was arrested for speaking out on the detention of whistleblowers Lalla Vatma and Rachida, who were held in concerning conditions after exposing the case of an 11-year-old Haratine girl allegedly subjected to slavery within an Arab family. These cases underscore ongoing concerns that slavery is not effectively criminalised and that women who denounce such practices continue to face arrest and detention.
MENA Rights Group therefore calls on the Mauritanian authorities to effectively end slavery and the systematic detention of anti-slavery activists, in particular women, and to put an end to the systemic discrimination faced by members of the Haratine community, especially women.
Next steps
The authorities have to implement the accepted recommendations ahead of the country’s next review, which will take place in 2031. MENA Rights Group calls on Mauritania to ensure that its formal acceptances are translated into concrete reforms.
