a civil rights forum, defending victims of oppression and prisoners of conscience,
and providing documented informations on human rights' violation in Mauritania
 

A workshop on the human rights’ concepts and implications
Nouakchott, 16 to 18 April 2008

The Mauritanian Human Right Watch and the Arab Commission for Human Rights conducted a joint workshop of three days (Feb. 16-18, 2008) at the Hotel Shinqit Place . The worship’s aim was to educate those who are active in defending human rights and civil liberties in Mauritania , and make them more aware of the intellectual and moral implications of their noble mission. Many defenders of the human right cause attended the event and the following organizations participated in the workshop:
- Arab Organization for Human Rights
- SOS exclavage
- Mauritanian Human Rights Watch
- Popular Initiative for the Defense of Guantanamo Detainees
- Organization of Single Moms
- National Union of Mauritanian Students
- General Union of Mauritanian Students
- Club Plus
- Young Women Association The program of the workshop included:

An opening statement delivered by the President of Mauritanian Human Rights Watch, Mr. Mohamed Vall Ould Mohamed Mahmoud in which he emphasizes the importance of the workshop and the expertise of the lecturers.

A lecture on the concept of human rights by Munsif al-Marzuqi, a well known Tunisian scholar and activist in the defense for the human rights cause.
A lecture by Haitham Manna’, the secretary general of the Arab Committee for Human Rights, on the history and development of the human rights struggle. An open discussion and comparison of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the African Pact on Human Rights and the Arab Pact on Human Rights.

A lecture by Sar Mamadou, the president of the Mauritanian Association of Human Rights Organizations, on the violation of the human rights of the Mauritanian African citizens and the expulsion of many of them from their country to Mali and Senegal.

An open discussion of the slavery problem in Mauritania , and the continuous suffering of thousands of Mauritanian citizens who were expelled from their country during the events of 1989 to Senegal and Mali .

A lecture by Ahmedou Wadi’a, the former Secretary General of the Mauritanian Human Rights Watch, on the practices of torture in Mauritania .
At the end of this workshop, the Award of the Mauritanian Human Rights Watch was given to the winner of this year, Mr. El-Mokhtar Ould Mohamed