Contrary to the widespread perception that Mauritania has moved toward democracy, this troubled country faces continued ethnic tensions and the prospect of increasing repression.
About the Author
Boubacar N’Diaye, a former high-level civil servant in Mauritania, currently teaches black studies and political science at the College of Wooster in Ohio. His most recent scholarly works deal with civil-military relations in Africa, democratization prospects, human rights, and pan-Africanism. He is author of The Challenge of Institutionalizing Civilian Control (2001).
Election officials made strides toward secure voter identification, and a two-party system appears to be emerging, but the 2019 elections revealed continuing problems with vote-buying and violence.
As more and more African presidents attempt to remove or circumvent constitutional term limits, African populations increasingly are mobilizing en masse, at great risk, to defend their constitutions.
