First Lady Parting Paris for Dearest Desert Marvels

French lawyer Mariam, Mauritania First Lady for 20 years (Noorinfo pict

Nouakchott, Mauritania. Seyid.O.Seyid. She had invited her classmate of Paris University Moctar Daddah for an Islamic conference organized by third year’s students of Law Faculty. That invitation had tremendously changed her life forever. The same mate had married her in Nov 4, 1958 and had invited her to his country of no capital for some reasons only God and her youth days did know, said Mauritania First Lady, French lawyer Mariam Daddah in a press interview. She left the city of lights Paris to stay in the dessert to help her love, the father of the nation, building his country out of scratch. Since then, her story is the history of modern Mauritania and the memories of the late President Moctar Daddah passed away in France, 14 October 2003 dormant in his Mauritania inborn town Boutilimitt.

Mariam’s mother was shocked by that pre-marriage relationship until she was seduced by the seriousness of her daughter classmate, the level of his education and the attraction of his appeasing convincing tone. Moctar Daddah was frankly sincere in his invitation, he had made it critical clear to his young French wife that she was invited to a desert country of nothing: no comfort, no capital, not even drinkable water. Mariam born Marie 13 had appreciated his honesty and had accepted to take the journey of all adventures bravely. In January 1959, Mariam Daddah, the young Parisian had thought of landing in Nouakchott desert as falling from the sky in nowhere to face a different world reality in a country that she did not understand any word of its local languages.

President Moctar Daddah had organized the first official reception in her honor attended by 25 persons representing the nation official elite. She had to live sometime in the tent as their villa was under construction.12 June 1957, Mauritania first Government cabinet meeting with French Governor Albert Mouragues was held under a tent surrounded by dunes in a village of a few hundred souls gathered around an old army post, commented the late President Moctar Daddah in his Memories. 

Mauritania first Government cabinet meeting(RFI photo)

Mariam Daddah, the widow of  Mauritania President Mortar Daddah had witnessed the first ceremony of her new future city foundation stone laid in March 5, 1958. The late French President Charles de Gaulle had visited the foundation site in December 1958.

President Charles de Gaulle in 1958 compared to today State House(RFI photo)

Mariam Daddah had summarized first impressions in the desert country by saying it was a privilege for her to witness the extraordinary adventure in isolation and great enthusiasm characterized by the awakening population alongside the man determined to build his nation. She used to say that her heart and spirit are attached to Mauritania, without having any intricacy of her French origin. This was the time of Mauritania lacking basic infrastructures and administrative competencies were immediate pressing challenges as most of key workforce was in Senegalese city Saint Luis that used to be the administrative capital of Mauritania under French colonial regime.

28 November 1960, Mauritania had gained its political independence, Mariam Daddah had focused her contribution on the creation of Women Movement to promote education and women full emancipation for participation in the construction of the new nation. While President Moctar was keen on preparatory stage projects and the diplomatic fight for his country to be recognized by the Arab world and the international community.The independence festivities were recorded and aired in a garage with a telecommunication transmitter left by the Americans in Atar city at the same of Second World War, according to the first reporter of Radio Mauritania Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Weddady.

In 1978, the military regime had toppled the first civilian President Moctar when his wife Mariam was in Senegal attending the Workshop of Female Lawyers. She was ordered to stay out of the country. She was sadly concerned about the safety of her jailed husband and three children she had left in Nouakchott. She returned home with the late President Moctar in 2001, after 25 years in exile divided between Tunisia and France.In 2010 she had created the Foundation of Moctar Daddah that was officially recognized as a non-profit organization of public utility. She had celebrated President Moctar Ould Daddah’s death tenth anniversary by editing two books about his personality and political actions.

"I do not scream over the past, its value induces the future. I am the messenger of President Moctar, everyone can play this role. It is now for all Mauritanians. ", stated First Lady Mariam Daddah in recent interview.The late President Moctar Daddah had dedicated the last words of his first independence speech to what he called the new capital, "Symbol of the will of the population that believes in its future."

With wistful voice, French lawyer Marriam Daddah and Mauritania First Lady for two decades, remembers today the legacy of her husband as exceptional example reconciling the western values with the authenticity of the Islamic faith in sporadic style of piety and tolerant leadership in his young state, the country of millenary history.