Mauritania has Taken Effective Measures to Promote and Protect Human Rights Highly Praised and Appreciated Locally and Internationally

The Assistant Commissioner for Human Rights, Humanitarian Action and Relations with Civil Society, Rasoul Ould El Khal, explained that Mauritania has sought to bring about a qualitative development for the promotion and protection of human rights, which has been highly praised and appreciated by partners and actors locally, regionally and internationally.
He added in a speech delivered on Monday via video technology, before the 79th ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which is currently hosted in the Gambian capital, Banjul, that this qualitative development witnessed by our country in the field of the promotion and protection of human rights was achieved through the adoption of a number of effective measures that enabled the strengthening of the legal and institutional frameworks and the creation of national awareness to accelerate access to rights and derive the duties arising from them on the one hand, and work to fulfill the country’s obligations towards the relevant regional and international mechanisms on the other hand.
He reviewed some of Mauritania’s achievements in its efforts to promote and protect human rights, which included the adoption of a legal arsenal in line with international and regional human rights conventions, taking all necessary measures in the effective and strict application of national laws in force, the adoption of a national strategy for the promotion and protection of human rights, the establishment of a ministerial committee to overcome difficulties and advance efforts in the field of human rights, and a joint follow-up cell entrusted with tracking files related to slavery and trafficking in persons before the judiciary, the establishment of an accurate database in this regard, as well as the activation of the National Authority to Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants, which, through its various mechanisms, works to ensure the protection of the rights of the various victims of trafficking in persons and to assist them through the fund designated for the same purpose, in addition to simplifying the mechanism for receiving and addressing complaints related to trafficking and human rights in general.
Mauritania is always keen to fulfil its obligations towards regional and international human rights mechanisms and proudly follows its positive interaction with these mechanisms, he said, stressing the determination of the country’s highest authorities to continue to accompany all efforts aimed at preserving and preserving human dignity in accordance with international standards and available capabilities and resources.
In this context, he recalled that Mauritania hosted during the past year the UN Group on the Rights of Women and Girls, and participated in the interactive dialogue with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery to discuss the final report of his visit to the country in 2022, in addition to submitting initial and periodic reports before international treaty bodies such as the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Committee for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
At the beginning of his speech, the Assistant Commissioner pointed out that the painful suffering of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip as a result of the ongoing war and the resulting deaths, wounded, displaced persons and massive destruction put the sanctity of the enjoyment of human rights, dignity, human values and international law in general at stake, calling for action for the immediate cessation of this war and the initiation of negotiations leading to the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian State, in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy.