Our Traditional Society on Crossroads…?!

Elycheikh Ahmedtolba

One of the unprecedented scenes in the streets of Nouakchott is to see children chasing cars while they stop before the red traffic. Not only children who are begging in the streets, but old people; some strong and healthy men and women also would come to you and invade your privacy asking and stopping you everywhere with explanations for their desperate need.

This scene is a new phenomenon to a conservative society like ours. It is a result of social, economic, and cultural deflections that recently took place in our tiny and multiracial society.

This article would attempt to account for the emergence of such phenomenon through touching on political and social contextualization. It seeks answers to some prevailing and persistent questions that have been self-imposing such as: Is the phenomenon of beggars roaming the streets normal aspect in our society?
Is this phenomenon rather a result of some radical changes happening within the social tissues? Is it enough for the government to combat and eradicate poverty to solve this problem? Why these children choose to come down to streets for begging while they are supposed to go to schools? How can the government stand such loss of the upcoming generation? Where is the civil society positioning itself in relation to awakening and stimulating common people about such intricate issues?

These are just few questions through which we can approach and embark on analyzing the causes behind the upheaval changes occurring in our society over the last five years. We know that it due to the traditional family and tribal or even regional ties the different communities were standing together and creating mutual bonds holding the whole society, but with the wide disclosure and openness to the outside world such ties and bonds have been falling apart.

"This phenomenon is a definitive result of the political stagnation our country is suffering from since five year, and which is a reflection of the political unrest or instability" explained Mohamed ould Mokhtar, a political analyst, and he added that "a fragile society like ours should never let such phenomenon grow up and spread out because it might be dangerous for any future strategy for reconstruction and it is, in fact, a threat to the social integration."

According to the study made by the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs in 2001, founding out that the overwhelming majority of the baggers roaming the streets are minors of the between 6 and 16 years old. Around 90 % of them are coming from different regions nearby Nouakchott such as Kaidi, Bougé, and Rosso. The National Center of Protection and Social Integration, which is a department of the Ministry in charge of Women and Childhood is rehabilitating more than 587 children. This number reflects the extent to which or society is facing a new upheaval change.

I think this phenomenon is a result of unprecedented looseness within the social, political and economical relations. The social structure has undergone a critical stage through the upheavals affecting the social relations and tribal ties. This change could be attributed to the repositioning of the central powers into the interstitial tissues of the one tribe. The tribe used to be the protector and supporter of its political and social adherents. This protection has not yet completely vanished but it is no longer as strong and coherent as it used to be in the previous years. Of course, poor people and the outcast when they find no way to go and no tribe to protect them or rather exploit the; and play them as the last winning political card, they would go down to streets beggaring.

In our society, the economical pressure is threatening the social structures in a sense that the Mauritanian society has been witnessing a new kind of social relations on the account of economical changes. That is to say that the poorest social class has realized the fact that the social bonds are no longer holding the heavy weight of the crisis.

In this regard, Mohamed Lemin who is in charge of Children Affairs in Unicef department in Nouakchott sees that "during the two last year the numbers of children beggars have doubled in a frightening rate which reflects that our traditional society is on the crossroads or rather is now on the knife edge," he states " this phenomenon is really growing up to be omnipresent everywhere and the government is not taking up any part into fighting this increasing situation."

I remember one night when I was sitting in a café in one of the corners of Nouakchott city discussing and commenting on the social and political issues; we use café-space as a public place where we can meet, especially it reminds us of the days and years when we are out of Mauritania. That night our discussion was abruptly interrupted by a young women taking the hand of little girl around 5 years of age; they are wearing clean cloths but they are baggers.

The same story is common wherever we go, when the cars stop before the traffic during rush hours; many children will surround your car beggaring or forcing you to give them something. These children are supposed to be on the bench in a classroom. The fact that these children are dropping out school is a great loss for the whole country and a threat for the future of our nation.

In a nutshell, it is to say that our traditional society is sawing the seeds of its deconstruction within itself through marginalizing people; people should all be equal and granted equal rights to access the political, social, and economical life in their nation. Inside view deeper in our society, we will discover that it is going through a turning point at all the levels, many people are losing hope and despair is taking over thousands of innocent souls and galvanizing all different aspects of everyday life.




PS: this article was originally published on Peace News Paper, issue Wednesday, 24th March, 2010. It is, however, worth mentioning that the above mentioned Journal is now available in Kiosques….