Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani has pardoned two opposition lawmakers who were sentenced to four years in prison for criticising him on social media, in a case that has reignited debate over race, slavery and freedom of expression in the West African nation.

The two MPs, Mariem Cheikh Dieng and Gamou Achour Salem, were convicted in May 2026 after accusing the president of promoting racial discrimination against Black Mauritanians and the descendants of enslaved people — language they described as "apartheid." Their trial was held under heavy security in Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital, without any procedure to lift their parliamentary immunity. A court found them guilty of offences including insulting state symbols, defamation and inciting violence, and ordered the deletion of their social media posts, the confiscation of their mobile phones and the closure of their online accounts. Their civil rights were also stripped, a consequence that effectively removes them from their parliamentary seats.

Both women are elected members of the Sawab party and belong to the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement, known by its French acronym IRA, a civil society organisation that campaigns against the continuing legacy of slavery in Mauritania. Although slavery was officially abolished in the country in 1981, human rights groups say the practice persists in various forms despite strengthened legislation introduced in 2015.

The presidential pardon, issued on 9 July 2026, ends the prison terms but has been met with sharp criticism by the abolitionist movement. IRA activist Youssouph Kamara rejected it as a gesture of goodwill, pointing out that the two lawmakers lose their parliamentary status due to the loss of their civil rights, and that five other IRA members remain in detention. "This is not a presidential pardon — it is a presidential farce," Kamara said, calling it "yet another attack on democracy in Mauritania."

The case has drawn wider attention to the intersection of race, political speech and anti-slavery activism in Mauritania, a country where the descendants of enslaved people form a significant and historically marginalised part of the population. Rights organisations say the prosecution of elected legislators for social media posts critical of the head of state raises serious concerns about the space available for political opposition and civil society in the country.