Mauritius: Honeymoon Destination and Human Rights Paradise?

On Wednesday 23 of October Dr. Arvin Boolell, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade together with his delegation traveled to Geneva to present the national report to the UPR Working Group of the Human Rights Council and to heed the recommendations by other states on how to further ameliorate the situation of human rights.

During the review several states showed concerns over some of the human rights issues in Mauritius. This included gender-based violence, prison overcrowding, limits to the freedom of expression, racial discrimination, child labour and trafficking of persons. The United Kingdom especially emphasized that gender-based violence in Mauritius is more prevalent than statistics show, while the United States focused on children working under dangerous conditions in agriculture and domestic settings.

The Minister, however, pointed out that human rights in Mauritius are “very high on the Government agenda.” One of the most important developments undertaken by the government since its last UPR review in 2009 is the launch of a National Human Rights Action Plan 2012 – 2020. This action plan advocates for a number of measures to be implemented in order to strengthen the human rights framework of the country such as; (1) Increase international cooperation through the ratification of human rights instruments and the modification of domestic laws accordingly, (2) improve the realisation of economic, social and cultural rights, (3) enhance women’s rights and ensure equal opportunities, (4) protect and safeguard the rights of vulnerable groups such as children, older persons, persons with disabilities and persons living in poverty.

The recommendations put forward to Mauritius mainly concentrated on the topics of concern mentioned above. On the issue of gender based violence the Minister assured that measures have already been taken and many programs and plans have been put in place to reduce gender based violence. Statistics show that almost one in four women in Mauritius experienced gender-based violence. Child abuse, excessive alcohol consume and conservative gender attitudes enhance the risk that men become violent towards women.

The Minister of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare, however, has in September announced that the ministry will launch a Victim Empowerment and Abuser Rehabilitation Programme, which will be implemented by the end of this month. This includes providing women who are victims of domestic abuse with safe shelter and financial support. As stated on the government website: ‘The new policy focuses on familiarising the public to the fact that a number of women are victims of violence because of their sex and social status and to, therefore, advocate with men for a change in mindsets so that women are treated on an equal footing.’

The issue of prison overcrowding has already been tackled by the construction of new prisons and reducing pre-trial prison stays of detainees. However, the controversial issue of same-sex sexual activity, a criminal offence punishable up to 5 years imprisonment was raised by several states. The Minister clarified that the government has yet to make a policy decision on the issue as it is a culturally sensitive topic and considered taboo. Otherwise, no discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation apparently takes place in Mauritius. The Minister even went on to highlight the island’s annual gay pride parade organized by the gay and lesbian community in Mauritius.

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance of Mauritius is telling a different story. LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender) persons are not recognised in the eyes of the law in Mauritius. They regularly encounter violence and hatred if they are open about their sexual orientation. This is clearly an area which the government of Mauritius needs to improve on by acknowledging the existence of LGBT community, decriminalise same-sex sexual activity and to raise awareness among the population.

As a country, that is multicultural, multilingual and multi-religious, the government of Mauritius needs to act with caution and sensitivity to avoid offending one of their own. As a small island nation facing financial constraints due to a free economy, high competition and lack of resources, Mauritius is facing many different challenges, even more than other countries, especially in implementing international human rights treaties. It also faces political difficulties in governing some of its smaller islands, some as far as 400km.

On the other hand, Mauritius is a well functioning parliamentary democratic republic, with a multiparty system and free and democratic elections. Not well known is the fact that Mauritius ranked 18th in the Democracy Index 2012 issued by the Economist Intelligence Unit. As a comparison, the United Kingdom came in at 16th and Norway leading in 1st position.

This second UPR review of Mauritius can therefore be seen as a step in the right direction in eliminating existing socio-political issues. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the country took a clear stand on the recommendations and questions asked by states, which can generally be seen as a positive sign. Mauritius will nevertheless, have to rely on outside help by the international community in order to be able to ratify more international human rights treaties and cooperate with human rights mechanisms.