Biram Dah Abeid, Brahim Bilal, Djiby Sow have been sentenced to two years in prison. Lawyers are appealing the conviction and a number of other anti-slavery activists have been released. We are working with the IRA Mauritanie to develop the next steps for they campaign the meantime please continue to SIGN and SHARE the petition calling for Biram and the IRA Mauritanie activists’ release.
Biram Dah Abeid is a leading anti-slavery activist in Mauritania, the country with the highest prevalence of slavery in the world1. The organisation he founded, the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement2 has fought for the freedom of countless men, women and children.
Mauritania fully outlawed slavery in 2007 but has systematically failed to end it in practice. It has fallen to activists like Biram to fight for people’s’ freedom and they face regular harassment and harsh treatment in their campaigning.
As you read this Biram and his fellow activists are sitting in a prison cell for their work to end slavery in Mauritania — and we need your help to secure justice. A huge wave of international pressure now could force the Mauritanian government to prioritize ending slavery and stop the harassment of anti-slavery activists.
Please call on the Mauritanian government to free Biram Dah Abeid and his fellow anti-slavery activists.
H/t Kausik
A hyper-bully state, The Islamic Republic of Mauritania condones slavery. They should have no trouble at all imprisoning dissenters.
One piece of information missing is what these activists are in prison *for*. Anti-slavery activism? Criticism of the government? Other, unrelated trumped up charges? No explanation?
@2: I also noticed the missing information, so I looked it up.
http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/27926 says ‘“illegal assembly and rebellion”, “encouraging rebellion” and “refusing to comply with the orders of admistrative authorities”’. I think that translates to “contempt of cop”.
From the title, I thought this was about USA for-profit prisons.