This interview was facilitated in 2026 through the Mauritanian Network for Human Rights in the U.S. (MNHRUS)

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Name of Participant: Anonymous 

Gender: Male 

Age: Retirement Age 

Geographical Location of experiences described during the interview: Between Brakna and Gorgol

Creation of the Entry 

This entry is a factual, reconstructed narrative of detailed notes taken during the interview process. It does not include The Participant’s exact wording; instead, it summarizes the information they are willing to disclose. 

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Context of the Entry 

The Participant is a Haratine individual of retirement age and primarily discusses the details of his enslavement in Mauritania from when he was 7 years old to when he was 17 years old. He was born in Mauritania. The Participant was enslaved in a village somewhere between the provinces of Brakna and Gorgol. The Participant said that he only discovered the geographic location of his birth and enslavement after he escaped. He escaped when he was around 17. The Participant’s Master was a “White Moor.” 

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Description of experiences disclosed 

As The Participant grew up, he saw a lot of problems in Mauritania; the main problem he saw around him was slavery.   The Participant said most of the enslaved people grew up with the belief that they owed everything to their masters, and if they did not abide, they would go to hell. Enslaved people were not allowed to pray. 

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He is thankful to have escaped that situation, but he keeps thinking about his family and their safety. He said in Mauritania, Black people, whether as Haratine or other groups, are not considered human beings. According to him, the minority in power is treating the rest with no dignity. 

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He and his entire family were considered enslaved people. He was never allowed to go to school because he was taking care of animals (cattle); he would have to herd them. Since he was 7 years old, he was doing this kind of work, and he would start at sunrise and not stop until sunset. He was working with other enslaved people, including kids and adults. He remembers working with around 8 females and 4 other males. The Participant was enslaved by a family, and his slavery was inherited by previous generations of his family. 

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He says that what hurt him was seeing enslaved people being tortured for trying to escape. He says that the heel would be cut if they saw anyone escaping. Heel cutting was a common practice. Some enslaved people, as a punishment, were also tied to a camel for days. The Participant did not disclose whether he had experienced these forms of torture. The people torturing the enslaved people were not the masters; they were the “house slaves” who were given instructions by the master. These house slaves were closer to the master. 

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Lack of food was very common. When they were tending the animals, they would milk them and drink the milk. Milk had to be brought back to the master’s house. They were fed with the leftovers from the master’s meals. The Participant stated that he saw enslaved people dying of thirst. 

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When they took the animals in the morning for feeding and milking, they were not allowed to return to their village until sunset. This was the same rule for enslaved people involved with planting vegetables. 

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The Participant wants to emphasize the role of enslaved women. He says that enslaved women have to do harder work. On top of tending to animals and growing crops, they had to cook for the master and do domestic work. Masters also slept with enslaved women, and any child that is born out of this action is also considered a slave upon birth. 

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The Participant also shared a particular story about an enslaved woman: This woman was pregnant, and she ended up giving birth while she was working, away from the village. She went back to the village early with her newborn child. At the end of the day, she was punished by the master for coming back to the village too early. 

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The interview concluded with the Participant stating he is 100 percent sure slavery is ongoing. In early 2026, he was made aware of a case where a young girl was brought from a similar village area (like his) to the capital city Nouakchott as a slave. He also says that in early 2026, an anti-slavery activist, Warda, was imprisoned. He says she has been physically abused and she is also pregnant. 

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Translator’s Note:

During the interview, our translator clarified that feeding animals does not mean feeding them with “feed”; it means taking them to grass and vegetation for grazing. 

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Language of The Participant used during the interview: Fulani

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Translator notes: One translator was present from the Mauritanian Network for Human Rights in the U.S. (MNHRUS) to translate from Fulani to English. 

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Source of entry: Detailed notes from the interviewer (who spoke English). 

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