Brussels, 03/07/2008 (Agence Europe) - In a report published on Tuesday 1 July 2008, Amnesty International (AI) slammed the violation in Mauritania of several essential rights of people wanting to emigrate to the EU. AI criticised brutal, abusive arrests, bad detention conditions in the port city of Nouadhibou in north-west Mauritania, group deportations to Senegal and Mali and the absence of opportunity to lodge appeals in court. In the report, AI writes that this policy follows intensive pressure from the EU and Spain in particular on local authorities. In a report entitled 'Mauritanie: personne ne veut de nous', Amnesty expresses extreme concern at the process of outsourcing EU immigration management policy that has led to some countries in Africa becoming the EU's armed guards. Amnesty is particularly critical of the dreadful detention conditions at the Nouadhibou detention centre (only 216 beds to house 3,257 inmates in 2007), nicknamed 'Guantanamito'. Amnesty points out that in 2003, Mauritania signed an agreement with Spain forcing the former to allow its citizens deported from the EU back into the country, along with people from other countries who have travelled through Mauritania en route to Europe. The French idea of an EU immigration and asylum pact encourages EU Member States to sign more of this type of agreement (see EUROPE 9694). (B.C.)