Satini Coco
Feb 8, 20211 min
Updated: Mar 31, 2021
Here are 3 things happening in Mauritius this week!
1) Mauritius commemorates 186th anniversary of the abolition of slavery with a ceremony at Le Morne- but local villagers feel a one day tribute doesn’t represent the impoverished conditions they live in for the rest of year
On 1st February 2020, Mauritius commemorated 186th anniversary of the abolition with a ceremony at Le Morne, attended by government officials. Le Morne is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and became an important place for enslaved people escaping from slavery, and later became one of the first areas to be settled by freed slaves.
However, local inhabitants feel their area is ‘taken advantage of’ for one day only, as for the rest of the year they live in impoverished conditions with few facilities, including a lack of water and electrcity, no public toilets on the beach despite being a UNESCO world heritage site, and a lack of infrastructure, recreation, and children’s activities.
2) Mauritius Foreign Minister quits over differences with his party, saying he “no longer supports the way they operate”
Mauritius’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nandcoomar Bodha, resigned from both government and the ruling party, saying he no longer supported the way the Mouvement Socialiste Militant party operates.
Bodha said in an e-mailed statement on Saturday that he quit the MSM because the way it operates “no longer corresponds to the values and principles which have always marked in my political career.”
3) Senior citizens protest in front of the National Assembly for the non-payment of RS375 (£6.87) owed to them in their pensions
SOURCES
https://www.lexpress.mu/article/369247/abolition-lesclavage-village-desclave-inaugure