Mauritanians Reject Use of Physical Force Against Women, but View Domestic Violence As a Private Matter

24 September 2024
Afrobarometer (Accra)
By Baba Adou

Majority of citizens say a woman will probably be criticised, harassed, or shamed by others in the community if she reports gender-based violence to the authorities.

Key findings

  • Three in 10 Mauritanians (31%) say violence against women and girls is common in their community.
  • More than two-thirds (68%) of citizens say a man is "never justified" in using physical force to discipline his wife, while 31% consider it "sometimes" or "always" justified.
  • Two-thirds (66%) of Mauritanians believe that domestic violence should be handled as a private matter to be resolved within the family rather than a criminal issue.
  • More than half (52%) of respondents say it is "somewhat likely" or "very likely" that a woman will be criticised, harassed, or shamed by others in the community if she reports GBV to the authorities. o But a strong majority (77%) believe that the police are likely to take cases of GBV seriously.

The 2021/2022 Women, Peace and Security Index ranks Mauritania 157th out of 170 countries - 13th worst in the world - in women's status and empowerment (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, 2021). One important reason is widespread gender-based violence enabled by societal taboos and a weak system of legal protections and enforcement (U.S. Department of State, 2023; United Nations General Assembly, 2024).

Amid powerful stigma surrounding gender-based violence (GBV), reliable data on its prevalence are scarce. The U.S. Department of State (2023) highlights "credible reports of ... extensive gender-based violence, including domestic or intimate partner violence, sexual violence, female genital mutilation/cutting, and other forms of such violence." After a 12-day visit, the United Nations Working Group on Discrimination Against Women and Girls reported "outrageous accounts of gender-based violence, in the family and the community, including a high prevalence of rape against young girls" (United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, 2023). The Mauritanian Parliament has rejected a draft law addressing GBV in 2018, 2021, and 2023 (Mechergui, 2024).

The government has outlawed female genital mutilation (FGM), but enforcement is almost non-existent and its prevalence remains high (United Nations, 2023): According to a report by the Orchid Project (2023), almost two-thirds of Mauritanian women aged 15-49 have undergone FGM. Another harmful practice, forced feeding of young women being prepared for marriage, persists mainly in rural areas (Ouldzeidoune, Keating, Bertrand, & Rice, 2013; United Nations, 2023).

This dispatch reports on a special survey module included in the Afrobarometer Round 9 (2021/2023) survey to explore Africans' perceptions of gender-based violence.

In Mauritania, most citizens say that GBV is not a common occurrence in their community and that a man is never justified in using physical force to discipline his wife. But a majority also consider domestic violence against women a private matter to be resolved within the family rather than a criminal issue requiring the involvement of law enforcement.

While most Mauritanians think the police take reported cases of GBV seriously, more than half say a woman is likely to be criticised, harassed, or shamed if she reports such violence to the authorities.

Baba Adou Baba Adou is a researcher of Political Science at the University of Florida and the UF Sahel Research Group

Read the original article on Afrobarometer.

Tagged:
Copyright © 2024 Afrobarometer. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica publishes around 600 reports a day from more than 110 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.