The junta's new Mauritanian government

Prime Minister Moulay ould Mohamed Laghdaf [pictured right], who was appointed by the Haute conseil d'état (HCE) junta, has announced his new government:

Nouakchott, 31 août (AMI) - La Présidence du Haut Conseil d'Etat communique : par décret en date de ce jour et sur proposition du Premier ministre sont nommés :

Ministre de la justice : Amadou Tidjane Bal,
Ministre des Affaires Etrangères et de la Coopération : Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Mohamedou,
Ministre de la Défense Nationale : Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Mohamed Lemine
Ministre de l'Intérieur et de la Décentralisation : Mohamed Ould Maaouya
Ministre des Affaires Economiques et du Développement : Sidi Ould Tah
Minsitre des Finances : Sid'Ahmed Ould Raiss
Ministre de l'Education nationale: Ahmed Ould Bah
Ministre des Affaires Islamiques et de l'Enseignement Originel : Othmane Ould Cheikh Ahmed Aboul Maali
Ministre de la Fonction Publique, de l'Emploi et de la Formation Professionnelle : Hacen Ould Limam Ould Amar Jowda
Ministre de la Santé: Mohamed Abdellahi Ould Siyam
Ministre du Pétrole et de l'Energie : Die Ould Zeine
Ministre des Pêches et de l'Economie Maritime : Hacenna Ould Ely
Ministre du Commerce, de l'Artisanat et du Tourisme : Bamba Ould Dermane
Ministre de l'Habitat, de l'Urbanisme et de l'Aménagement du Territoire : Sy Adama
Ministre du Développement Rural : Messaouda Mint Baham
Ministre de l'Equipement et des Transports : Camara Moussa Seydi Boubou
Ministre de l'Hydraulique et de l'Assainissement: Mohamed Lemine Ould Aboye
Ministre de l'Industrie et des Mines : Mohamed Abdellahi Ould Oudaa
Ministre de la Culture, de la jeunesse et des Sports : Sidi Ould Samba
Ministre de la Communication et des Relations avec le Parlement : Mohamed Ould Mohamed Abderrahmane Ould Moine
Ministre des Affaires Sociales, de l'Enfance et de la Famille : Selama Mint Cheikhna Ould Lemrabott
Ministre Délégué auprès du Premier Ministre chargé de l'Environnement et du Développement Durable : Mohamed Ould Ahmed Salem
Secrétaire d'Etat chargé de la Modernisation de l'Administration et des TICs: Sidi Ould Mayouf
Secrétaire d'Etat chargé des Affaires Maghrébines : Mohamed Abderrahmane Ould Mohamed Ahmed
Secrétaire Général du Gouvernement : Bâ Ousmane
Commissaire aux Droits de l'Homme, à l'Action Humanitaire et aux Relations avec la Société Civile : Mohamed Lemine Ould Dadde
Commissaire à la Sécurité Alimentaire : Mohamed Ould Mohamedou
Commissaire à la Promotion des Investissements : Bâ Houdou

Salient points:

1. It has approximately one million ministers, since in Mauritania there are just that many vested interests (tribes, business groups, parties, regional bigwigs, foreign-backed puppets, religious families, etcetera) which need to get a slice of the pie, or the whole thing will crumble. Now they can all hire their relatives as expert consultants and help themselves to appropriate portions of the road construction budget, rural development funds or fishery license incomes, and, in return, abstain from causing trouble. This, while not terribly conducive to good governance, is standard practice, and should not be blamed on the junta specifically.
   
2. None of the major opposition parties take part, even -- as explained here -- from those that supported the coup. (In fact, four ministers were members of Ahmed ould Daddah's RFD, but they are now expelled.)
   
3. There are only four Black Africans as opposed to 18 Arabs, which is a gross racial underrepresentation even by Mauritania's rather unfair standards. Seems a telling sign of junta discomfort: bye bye, attempts to maintain southern support, and hello northern tribal entrenchment.
4. Foreign Minister Mohamed Mahmoud ould Mohamedou is a sharp, English-speaking Harvard pol-sci doctor, which seems to be just what the junta needs (interview: PDF). Conveniently enough, he's also a member in good standing of the ouled bou Sbaa tribe -- just like the HCE top brass, including Gen. Abdelaziz himself. Sometimes you're just lucky with the genealogy, I guess.
5. Slight shocker: new Human Rights Minister Mohamed Lemine ould Dedde. He is, or was, the leader of Conscience and Resistance, a leftist intellectual group in the habit of producing lengthy, verbose denounciations of all and sundry (you know the type). The CR has opposed the coup, and now duly expels its leader for collaborating with it.
   
6. International reactions are, still, not quite what they hoped for. France: "We consider this decision, like all the measures taken by the military responsibles who have seized power, and in particular the overthrow of the president, to be void of all legitimacy." -- United States: "We are considering personal sanctions against those who are an obstacle to the return of constitutional order. Clearly we could consider individuals named in the government in that group".
   
7. As the astute commenters of CRIDEM point out, the name Mohammed or Mahmoud appears 23 times in a list of 22 ministers, and at the start of the holy month of Ramadan that must surely be a sign of something.