MAURITIUS: The Most Peaceful Country of Africa

Mauritius is known as a safe and even very beautiful country but what else besides these two facts? There are even those who do not know that this is an African country because its beauty makes some people ignore this detail. Are you ready to discover more facts about Mauritius? Here are 10 interesting facts you might not know about Mauritius. Now before we begin, if you are new to the channel, subscribe and turn on the notification bell so you don't miss any of our new videos. Famous Honeymoon Destination Mauritius is one of the most romantic travel destinations in the world. In fact, Mauritius has won the World Award for Best Honeymoon Destination in three consecutive years. Famous for its turquoise lagoons and pristine white sand beaches, Mauritius is the most visited island in the Indian Ocean. The arrival of the newlyweds at the hotel is filled with saga dancers, traditional island music, adding a dash of romance to the air. The newlyweds are also greeted with a romantic dinner, premium wine, and more. It is a destination that offers plenty of choice for the bride and groom. Between beaches, romantic hotels, catamaran cruises, Mauritius invites love. The Arabs were among the first inhabitants of Mauritius. Mauritius remained unknown and uninhabited for a long time until it was visited by Arab sailors and subsequently appeared on maps around 1500 under the Arabic name of Dina Arabi. Indeed, the discovery of Mauritius dates back to the 8th century, when the Arabs continued to expand their trading power across the entire Indian Ocean. Mauritius was then called Dina Arabi and represented a simple point of passage during the exchange of gold, animals, slaves, and silver. The Arabs were only interested in making a few stopovers, but several pirates were said to have found refuge on the island and many legends mentioned several treasures hidden throughout the territory. At the time, Mauritius was not yet strictly speaking inhabited. The Mauritian population is mixed. The population of Mauritius is characterized by interbreeding. Indeed, this population is noticed through the many festivals organized throughout the whole year. For example, the Taipusam, Kavadi, the Chinese New Year, as well as the Muslim and Christian holidays. Respect for institutions, tolerance, respect for others, and other traditions are values that are still very present in the population. The Diwali festival, which is a Hindu festival, is above all a moment of sharing and unification of the Mauritian communities, whether they are Muslims, Hindus, or Catholics. Locals celebrate Diwali in hopes of a whole new start and pushing the negative aspects out of their lives. Apart from the diversity of the Mauritian population, there is also the legendary welcome and kindness of the Mauritians. Naturally, gentle and very hospitable, the Mauritians are the main wealth of Mauritius. The capital is one of the oldest cities in the country. Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius, is one of the ancient cities of the country and before being baptized Port Louis, it went by other names and has a story to tell. Indeed, since Roman times, the harbor of Blavet was known to travelers. It was called Loc Perrin in the Middle Ages, and then it took the name of Port Louis in 1618 in honor of King Louis XIII, who wanted to make it a fortified city to protect the kingdom from insults from English, Spanish, or Dutch sea runners. Louis XIV made it the seat of the Compagnie des Indes Orientales in 1664, which was at the origin of that of Lorient. Port Louis experienced a great period of prosperity with the return of ships laden with wealth, gold, silver, spices, silk fabrics, and more. The historic city still shelters beautiful houses which bear witness to its history. The Citadelle, built in the 16th and 17th centuries, now houses the Maritime Museum, the Arsenal Museum, the Boat Museum, and the Museum of the Compagnie des Indes Francaises. The first sugar factory was opened in 1744. The cultivation of cane required an abundant workforce. Eight large estates shared, in 1810, approximately three-quarters of an agricultural area, which still represented only 10% of the total area of the island. By the 1830s, there were 16,000 hectares under sugar cane cultivation, with an annual production of 35,000 tons of sugar. The model of large sugar estates was favored by the expansion of the sugar industry. Many small and medium-sized planters disappeared during this period. There was formation of two groups, the possessing whites and the non-possessing non-whites. Economic crisis imposed a reorganization of this model from 1840, with small lands in 1840 and large lands in 1860. Small lots of land were then sold to Indian workers. It was from there that the sugar industry really expanded. Its role in World War II During the war, Mauritius regained a certain strategic importance, which it no longer had when ships resumed the old route around the Cape of Good Hope, following Italy entering the war in 1940 and after Japan entered the war and when it became necessary to send ships to the Far East. The fall of Singapore in February 1942 reinforced Mauritius' importance as a British naval and air force in the region. Following the fall of Singapore, which posed dangers, real or imagined, of a Japanese invasion for the island and its dependencies, the people of Mauritius were called upon to face the enemy in the event of an attack. In comparison with the First World War, more Mauritians coming from the various layers of the population participated directly or indirectly in the Second World War. The Mauritian Flag or the Four Stripes The Mauritian flag, commonly referred to as the Four Bands, was named on March 12, 1968 when the country gained independence. This flag is made of four horizontal bands of the same proportions and four different colors. Although the Mauritian flag varies more or less depending on whether it is entered for civilian use on civilian boats in the country or naval on National Coast Guard boats, the four official colors that compose it remain always present, and each of them has specific symbolic attributes. For example, red represents the struggle for freedom and independence, the blue represents the Indian Ocean and the middle of which Mauritius is located, yellow represents the new light of independence, and finally green represents the agriculture of Mauritius and its color throughout the 12 months of the year. Slavery was common in Mauritius During the colonial period, the community of the island of Mauritius was in the grip of slavery. Mauritians of African descent suffered greatly during the dark periods of slavery. Indeed, it was the Dutch settlers who brought the first slaves to the island as labor, then the French took control of Mauritius, focusing on the production of sugar cane. This meant the arrival of more slaves to work on the plantations. And finally, when the British colonized the island in 1810, slaves made up around 80% of the island's population, mostly from Madagascar and East Africa. Slavery was abolished in the British Empire in August 1834, but it was several months before Mauritius did so on February 1, 1835, becoming the last of the British colonies to abolish slavery. Three countries colonized Mauritius Mauritius was colonized by the Dutch, the French, and the English. In fact, in 1598, a Dutch squadron landed at the Grand Port under the command of Admiral Vibrand van Warwyck. The island was then named Mauritius in honor of Prince Maurice van Nassau, Stadtholder of Holland. The island became a French colony when, in September 1715, Guillaume de France d'Arcel landed and took possession of this precious home port on the route to India. He named the island Ile-de-France, but it was not until 1721 that the French began to occupy it, and finally, the English landed in large numbers north of Mauritius and quickly overthrew the French, who capitulated. In accordance with the Treaty of Paris of 1814, the Isle of France, which resumed its previous name of Mauritius, ceded definitely to Great Britain, along with its dependent territories, which then included Rodrigues and the Seychelles. On the French Act of Surrender, signed by both parties, the English guaranteed that they would respect the French language, customs, laws, and traditions of the people of Mauritius. A Peaceful Country The Institute for Economics and Peace, IEP, 2021 Global Peace Index Report, ranked Mauritius as Africa's most peaceful nation. According to the main global measure of world peace, Mauritius is first on the continent, followed by Ghana. The country recorded only a slight deterioration from last year's score, and fell three places. The most significant change occurred in the area of safety and security, particularly in the homicide rate indicator. The homicide rate in Mauritius fell from 1.8 to 2.9 per 100,000 inhabitants. The country has also seen an intensification of civil unrest after thousands of people protested against the government's handling in a massive oil spill in August 2020. Drug traffickers, whether Mauritians or foreigners, face severe punishment by the law. Herb consumption is strictly prohibited under penalty of imprisonment. Here we are at the end of our video, I hope you enjoyed it and I hope you learned something new today. Would you like to visit this country? Please let us know in the comments what you think of Mauritius. And with that folks, we hope to see you again soon in the new videos. Bless.