Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about 2,000 kilometres off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island, as well as Rodrigues, Agaléga and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, along with nearby Réunion, are part of the Mascarene Islands. The main island of Mauritius, where most of the population is concentrated, hosts the capital and largest city, Port Louis. The country spans 2,040 square kilometres (790 sq mi) and has an exclusive economic zone covering 2,300,000 square kilometres.
The known history of Mauritius begins with its discovery by Arabs and Malays, followed by Europeans and its appearance on maps in the early 16th century. Mauritius was successively colonized by the Netherlands, France and Great Britain, and became independent in 12 March 1968.
Sir Anerood Jugnauth, GCSK, PV, was a Mauritian politician and barrister who served both as President and Prime Minister of Mauritius. He was Member of Parliament for Piton & Riviere Du Rempart.
The Workers' Party is a Marxist–Leninist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Paul Raymond Bérenger GCSK, MP is a Mauritian politician who was Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2003 to 2005. He has been Leader of the Opposition on several occasions – from 1983 to 1987, 1997 to 2000, 2005 to 2006, 2007 to 2013, October 2013 to 15 September 2014, and again from December 2014 to December 2016 where he was replaced by Xavier-Luc Duval. Following his party's defeat in the 2014 general elections, he became Leader of the Opposition for the sixth time, making him the longest ever to serve in this constitutional position. He was also Deputy Prime Minister from 1995 to 1997 and again from 2000 to 2003, and he was a cabinet minister in the government of Anerood Jugnauth in 1982 and 1991. Bérenger, a Christian of Franco-Mauritian descent, has been the only non-Hindu Prime Minister of Mauritius, or, more particularly, the only Prime Minister who has not belonged to the Jugnauth or Ramgoolam families.
The president of the Republic of Mauritius is the head of state of the Republic of Mauritius. Mauritius is a parliamentary republic, and the president functions as a ceremonial figurehead, elected by the National Assembly as set out by the Constitution of Mauritius. The current office-holder is Prithvirajsing Roopun. He took the office on 2 December 2019. The president's official residence is the State House.
The Mouvement Militant Mauricien (MMM) is a left-wing socialist political party in Mauritius. The party was formed by a group of students in the late 1960s. The MMM advocates what it sees as a "fairer" society, without discrimination on the basis of social class, race, community, caste, religion, gender or sexual orientation.
Since 1967, Mauritius has experienced 12 free and fair democratic general elections to choose a government.
The Labour Party is a centre-left social-democratic political party in Mauritius. It is one of four main Mauritian political parties along, with the Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM), the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) and the Parti Mauricien Social Démocrate (PMSD). As a member of the Labour Party-MMM alliance, it elected four Members of Parliament in the general election of 2014. The party is led by Navin Ramgoolam.
Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP is a Mauritian politician who was former Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2005 to 2014 and leader of the Labour Party (Mauritius). He was Leader of the Opposition from 1991 to 1995. He served as Prime Minister for the first time from December 1995 until September 2000, and became Leader of the Opposition again from October 2000 to 4 July 2005. On 5 July 2005, he became prime minister for a second term after his Alliance Sociale won the general elections. He served again as Prime Minister from 2005 to 2014, when he was defeated afterwards.
Mauritian Solidarity Front, also known by its acronym FSM is a political party in Mauritius trying to represent the island nation's sizable Muslim minority. Until 2004, the party was known as Hizbullah. The theocratic party is centered around its leader Cehl M. Fakeemeeah. In 1992, Cehl Fakeemeeah announced the formation of the Hizbullah later renamed Mauritian Solidarity Front. FSM is also considered to be the real successor of Comite Action Musulman (C.A.M.) led by Sir Abdul Razakh Mohammed in the past. In fact, since the Elections of 2000, there was no Muslim party in Mauritius except FSM. The history of Mauritius recognise FSM as the second largest Muslim party in the history of Mauritius.
The Militant Socialist Movement is a centre-left political party in Mauritius. It is the largest single political party in the National Assembly of Mauritius, winning 42 of the 69 seats in the 2019 general elections. It also holds the largest number of seats in all city/town councils through the country with 60 councilors out of 120.
Sir Abdool Razack Mohamed was an Indian-born former senior Mauritian Minister in the pre and post-independence cabinet of Mauritius.
Santé engagé is a genre of Mauritian music which consists of singing and rapping protest songs. It is a way to protest against political/social oppression and repression through music. The genre mixes traditional Mauritian sega with Indian, Chinese and Western influences.
General elections were held in Mauritius on 5 May 2010. The coalition comprising Mauritius Labour Party under Navin Ramgoolam, the Militant Socialist Movement under Pravind Jugnauth and the Mauritian Social Democrat Party under Xavier Luc Duval, won a majority with 41 seats in the parliament. The Mauritian Militant Movement-led coalition under Paul Berenger finished second with 18 seats. The Mauritian Solidarity Front won one seat and the Rodrigues Movement won the two remaining seats. The elections were the ninth to be held since independence from the United Kingdom in 1968.
Sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago is disputed between Mauritius and the United Kingdom. Mauritius has repeatedly stated that the Chagos Archipelago is part of its territory and that the United Kingdom claim is a violation of United Nations resolutions banning the dismemberment of colonial territories before independence. The UK government has stated that it has "no doubt" about its sovereignty over the Chagos, yet has also said that the Chagos will be returned to Mauritius once the islands are no longer required for military purposes. Given the absence of any meaningful progress with the UK, Mauritius took up the matter at various legal and political forums. The African Union and the Non-Aligned Movement have expressed unanimous support for Mauritius.
The Leader of the Opposition of the Republic of Mauritius is the Member of Parliament who leads the Official Opposition in Mauritius. The Leader of the Opposition is the leader of the largest political party in the National Assembly that is not in government.
Sir Charles Gaëtan Duval QC was a barrister, statesman and politician from Mauritius who was the leader of the Parti Mauricien Social Démocrate (PMSD).
Prithvirajsing Roopun GCSK, also known as Pradeep Singh Roopun, is a Mauritian politician serving as the seventh president of Mauritius since 2019.
Harisun Boodhoo more commonly known as Harish Boodhoo, is a Mauritian political figure who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Mauritius from 11 June 1982 to 21 August 1983. He was elected Member of Parliament (MP) in 1976, 1982 and 1983 in Rivière des Anguilles and Souillac.
