Mariem Hassan, who has died of bone cancer aged 57, in a desert refugee camp for the Sahrawi people in south-west Algeria, was one of north Africa’s great singers. She used her powerful voice to publicise the plight of those who were forced to flee from their homeland when Morocco took control of Western Sahara in 1975. She spent much of her life in the camps, starting her musical career in a group that provided support for the Polisario fighters in the war against Morocco, and developed a style that could switch from laments to upbeat desert blues. It was an approach that made her a hero for the Sahrawi people, and also brought her international acclaim.
Daughter of Mohamed and Erguia, she was born in what was then the colony of Spanish Sahara, on the west coast of Africa, in a dry riverbed outside Smara, where her father was a nomad who herded goats and camels. Her date of birth and the spelling of her name were recorded in several different ways on official documents. Mariem was one of 10 children, three of whom would be killed in the fighting with Morocco, and at the age of 13 was forced by her parents to marry an older man against her wishes. She managed to escape during the wedding ceremony, just as she had been led to the entrance to her fiance’s tent, and was hidden by her brothers until her parents returned the dowry. The wedding was cancelled.
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