Thousands rally in Mauritius against corruption, call for general election

Public “institutions cannot continue to rot,” Arvin Boolell, leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, said at the rally. “We walk for freedom.”

Thousands of Mauritians marched in the capital of Port Louis on Saturday, calling for a general election and protesting against corruption.

Arvin Boolell, leader of the opposition in the National Assembly. (Facebook/@drarvinboolell)

Public “institutions cannot continue to rot,” Arvin Boolell, leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, said at the rally. “We walk for freedom.”

It was the third major protest against the government in eight months. While those in August and September centered on a fuel spill from a Japanese-owned tanker off Mauritius’s coast, Saturday’s was the first with all the main opposition parties unifying to ask the government to step down.

Mauritius, an Indian Ocean island nation of 1.3 million people, elected the Mouvement Social Militant-led alliance at the end of 2019 for a five year mandate. The tourism-dependent country is known for political stability and smooth transitions of power.