Cannabis in Mauritania

Last updated

Cannabis in Mauritania is illegal, but the country serves as a major transit point for Moroccan cannabis en route to Europe.

Contents

Law

In Mauritania, it is illegal to grow, sell, possess, or use cannabis. In 1977, hearings before the US House stated that the Mauritanian Drug Enforcement Administration lacked the staff and training to adequately deal with the cannabis issue in the country. Officials presenting the hearings recommended that the country adopt harsher laws on cannabis. [1]

Cannabis-trafficking route

Trafficking

Mauritania is part of a cannabis-trafficking route extending from Morocco through Mauritania and on to Mali, then overland to Egypt and eventually to Europe. [2] Approximately one-third of Moroccan cannabis transits this Sahel route. [3] Morocco chooses to go through Mauritania to export its cannabis to avoid Algerian soils, the two countries being in a feud since the Western Sahara issue. [4]

In 2011, Mauritania president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz stirred a controversy when he reduced the sentence of 5 cocaine smugglers, and a few months later the court released 30 convicted smugglers. In 2012, a smuggling network was dismantled, and it was discovered that it was using a special permit to cross the border delivered by the former Head of police of Mauritania. [4] [5]

In April 2015, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz highlighted in a report on Western Sahara submitted to the UN Security Council by Ban Ki-moon that «considerable quantity of cannabis resin» goes from Morocco to eastern Africa through Mauritania. [6] When journalists of Al-Bayan elaborated on this idea in an article, it caused a diplomatic turmoil, and the chief adviser in the Algerian embassy in Nouakchott was expelled on the basis that Algeria was the source of those «lies and false allegations». [7]

Seizures

A 2009 UN report on drug trafficking still considered that Mauritania lacked to resources to address its drug issues and observed that very few drug seizures had been recorded in the country. [8]

In January 2012, the Mauritanian authorities seized 2 tons of cannabis in Nouadhibou, and 3.6 tons in Timbedra in May 2012. [4]

In February 2016, the Mauritanian justice charged and jailed 11 people involved in a seizure of 1.3 tons of cannabis. The news report stated that a son of former president Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla was involved in the trafficking. [9]

In February 2017, the Moroccan authorities seized 3.13 tons of cannabis in a truck at the Guerguerate crossing point between Morocco and Mauritania. [10] A month later, at the same Guerguarate crossing point, the Moroccan authorities seized 7.42 tons of cannabis in a truck heading to Mauritania. [11]

Cultivation

A 1996 report notes that small cannabis plots, irrigated by a dam on the Senegal river, have been found in Southern Mauritania. [12]

Related Research Articles

The original inhabitants of Mauritania were the Bafour, presumably a Mande ethnic group, connected to the contemporary Arabized minor social group of Imraguen ("fishermen") on the Atlantic coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armed Forces of Mauritania</span>

The Armed Forces of Mauritania is the defence force of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, having an army, navy, air force, gendarmerie, and presidential guard. Other services include the national guard and national police, though they both are subordinated to the Ministry of the Interior. As of 2018, the Mauritanian armed forces budget was 3.9% of the country's GDP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madrid Accords</span> 1975 treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end Spanish presence in the Sahara

The Madrid Accords, formally the Declaration of Principles on Western Sahara, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania setting out six principles which would end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara and arrange a temporary administration in the area pending a referendum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla</span> Former head of state of Mauritania

Col. Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidallah was the head of state of Mauritania from 4 January 1980 to 12 December 1984. He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2003 presidential election and the 2007 presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiris al-Gharbiyya</span> Area of the Western Sahara

Tiris al-Gharbiyya was the name for the area of Western Sahara under Mauritanian control between 1975 and 1979.

The Oulad Bou Sbaa is a Chorfa/Zaouia tribe, who claim descent from Abu Sib'a, the Idrissid 16th century Tribal Chief. They live in Morocco, Western Sahara and Mauritania, with members of the tribe holding different nationalities depending on their residence and upbringings. In the 19th and 20th century, the tribe's influence in its core areas of southern Spanish Sahara was diminished and permanently weakened following heavy defeat in bloody battles against the Reguibat tribal Confederations, which were then rapidly asserting their influence over these areas. Speakers of Hassaniya Arabic, they were nomadic (Bedouin) and herded camels in today's Western Sahara and Mauritania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akjoujt</span> Place in Inchiri, Mauritania

Akjoujt is a small city in western Mauritania. It is the capital of the Inchiri region. "Akjoujt" (ɑk'ʤuʤt) means 'wells'. The city's main industry is gold and copper mining.

The illegal drug trade in China is influenced by factors such as history, location, size, population, and current economic conditions. China has one-sixth of the world's population and a large and expanding economy. China's large land mass, close proximity to the Golden Triangle, Golden Crescent, and numerous coastal cities with large and modern port facilities make it an attractive transit center for drug traffickers. Opium has played an important role in the country's history since before the First and Second Opium Wars in the mid-19th century.

In December 1984, Haidallah was deposed by Colonel Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, who, while retaining tight military control, relaxed the political climate. Ould Taya moderated Mauritania's previous pro-Algerian stance, and re-established ties with Morocco during the late 1980s. He deepened these ties during the late 1990s and early 2000s as part of Mauritania's drive to attract support from Western states and Western-aligned Arab states. Mauritania has not rescinded its recognition of Polisario's Western Saharan exile government and remains on good terms with Algeria. Its position on the Western Sahara conflict has been, since the 1980s, one of strict neutrality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Mauritanian coup d'état</span> Military overthrow of President Abdallahi

The 2008 Mauritanian coup d'état was a military coup that took place in Mauritania on August 6, 2008, when President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi was ousted from power by the Armed Forces of Mauritania, led by a group of high-ranking generals he had dismissed from office earlier that day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz</span> President of Mauritania from 2009 to 2019

Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is a Mauritanian former politician who was the 8th President of Mauritania, in office from 2009 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mauritania</span> Country in Northwest Africa

Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to the north and northwest, Algeria to the northeast, Mali to the east and southeast, and Senegal to the southwest. By land area, Mauritania is the 11th-largest country in Africa and the 28th-largest in the world, and 90% of its territory is situated in the Sahara. Most of its population of approximately 4.3 million lives in the temperate south of the country, with roughly one-third concentrated in the capital and largest city, Nouakchott, located on the Atlantic coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Mauritanian presidential election</span>

Presidential elections were held in Mauritania on 18 July 2009. Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who led the 2008 coup d'état, won a narrow first-round majority in the election, according to official results. A second round, if necessary, would have been held on 1 August 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crime in Slovakia</span>

Slovakia is a Central European country with a history of relatively low crime. While crime became more widespread after the Revolutions of 1989, it remains low when compared to many other post-communist countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">High Council of State (Mauritania)</span>

The High Council of State was the supreme political body of Mauritania. It served as the country's interim government following the coup d'état which ousted the President, Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi on August 6, 2008. It was led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz. After seizing power, it quickly pledged to hold elections "in the shortest possible period". A few days after seizing power, Ould Abdel Aziz named Mauritanian Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union, Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf, as Prime Minister.

Cannabis in Mali is illegal.

Cannabis in Jordan is illegal. In 2018, Anwar Tarawneh, Director of the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) reported that "marijuana is the most consumed drug in Jordan", with the AND seizing 1.5 tonnes of cannabis that year. As Jordan is a signatory to the 1961 United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.

The illegal drug trade in Japan is the illegal production, transport, sale, and use of prohibited drugs in Japan. The drug trade is influenced by various factors, including history, economic conditions, and cultural norms. While methamphetamine is historically the most widely trafficked illegal drug in post-World War II Japan, marijuana, cocaine, and other prohibited substances are also present. Additionally, Japan's status as a developed economy and the presence of organized crime in Japan have made it a target of the international drug trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 in Mauritania</span> List of events

The following lists events in the year 2020 in Mauritania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corruption in Syria</span>

Corruption in Syria follows the familiar patterns of state-based corruption, namely government officials abusing their political powers for private gain in the country of Syria.

References

  1. ↑ United States. Congress. House. Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control, Decriminalization of Marihuana: Hearings Before the Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control, House of Representatives, Ninety-fifth Congress, First Session, March 14, 15, and 16, 1977, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1977
  2. ↑ Report of the International Narcotics Control Board (2007). DIANE Publishing. 2009. pp. 53–. ISBN   978-1-4379-0280-8.
  3. ↑ Riccardo Alcaro; Nicoletta Pirozzi (21 May 2014). Transatlantic Security from the Sahel to the Horn of Africa. Edizioni Nuova Cultura. pp. 65–. ISBN   978-88-6812-273-7.
  4. 1 2 3 Wolfram Lacher, Organized Crime and Conflict in the Sahel-Sahara Region, Carnegieendowment.org, 13 September 2012
  5. ↑ Frederic Wehrey; Anouar Boukhars (2 April 2013). Perilous Desert: Insecurity in the Sahara. Brookings Institution Press. pp. 67–. ISBN   978-0-87003-405-3.
  6. ↑ West Africa: Mauritania Denounces the Threat of Moroccan Cannabis for the Sahel-Saharan Region (UN Report), Allafrica.com, 18 April 2015
  7. ↑ Mauritania, Algeria in diplomatic crisis over drugs article, Alarabiya.com, 27 April 2015
  8. ↑ United Nations, Report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2009 [ permanent dead link ], United Nations Publications, 2010
  9. ↑ 11 arrested in Mauritania in connection with 1.3 tonnes of drugs seized, Africanews.com, 6 February 2016
  10. ↑ Morocco seizes over 3 tons of cannabis at crossing point with Mauritania, Xinhuanet.conm, 23 February 2017
  11. ↑ Morocco seizes 7.42 tons of cannabis at crossing point with Mauritania Archived 2018-08-16 at the Wayback Machine , Themaghrebtimes.com, 13 March 2017
  12. ↑ The Geopolitics of Drugs. Northeastern University Press. 1996. p. 114.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.