More than 10,000 Mauritians have enrolled in the now famous web site Facebook. And the recent temporary closure of the site has in no way stopped the infatuation of these Mauritians with their new social network online. On the contrary, many may have logged in to find out what could have been said on the prime minister, Navin Ramgoolam, to see what could have led to such a severe decision ? the censorship of their current favourite site.

?I log in everyday? I just want to check what has changed!? Jasmina Ruben, in her twenties, is among those who have been hit by the Facebook virus. Although she makes it clear that she is ?not an addict?, she admits she logs in everyday. Yet, she is quite new in the business. ?I received a request from someone I did not know at all on a similar site. When I mentioned this to my friend, he told me about Facebook and this is how I found myself on the site.?

In fact, her first days in the social network have been quite emotional for her. She managed to make contact again with some friends in Germany. Having lived there for a number of years, she realised it was a great way of ?staying in touch with friends she had not heard about since she had come back home five years ago?.

What she likes above all with Facebook is the fact that she can view pictures of her friends and that her friends can see what is happening in her life. ?I have more than 100 ?friends? on my account now but I only chat and see pictures of those to whom I am really close.?

Dominique Ducasse ? in her thirties ? makes about the same use of Facebook. She was living in Australia when she entered the network less than a year ago. She discovered the site through a friend and thought it was a ?nice way of meeting schoolmates? she had lost touch with since she left Mauritius ten years ago.

Just like Jasmina, she has not updated her profile since she enrolled on the site. ?My objective is not to make contact with new people but rather to share photos and chat with my friends ? either here or those in Australia,? Dominique comments.

If Facebook is very popular here, it may be even more with the Mauritian diaspora. It is a golden opportunity for them to stay in touch with friends and family still in Mauritius and catch up with what they are missing by being thousands of kilometres away.

But users also willingly admit they enjoy the ?gossip? aspect of the site. Facebook appears as one of the best ways of watching the doings of people in your close and not-so-close environment. It is easy to log in and see what the friends of your friends have been doing over the past few months, weeks or even days. Of course, it is up to each person to put in what they want and conceal what they wish to keep secret but detractors see something unhealthy in displaying one?s private life.

Anouchka ? who chose a false name for obvious reasons ? acknowledges that one of the main reasons why she enrolled in Facebook was to see what her ex-boyfriend was doing. ?I can see the girls he has as friends and which photos there are on his profile. I know what he is doing when I?m not around.? Such attitudes may appear extreme but there could be more Anouchkas on site than we imagine?

Whatever the controversial aspect of this network may be, there is no doubt that its reputation is gaining ground in Mauritius and elsewhere. With 46 million people enrolled over the world, it is a fact that the small social network once reserved for Harvard students has established a strong reputation today. Whatever the reason for enrolling, there is no doubt that Facebook still has a bright future ahead with new enrolments everyday.