Radio Télévision Belgique sheds light on Western Sahara cause on occasion of anniversary of departure of last Spanish soldier
By: Hana Saada
ALGIERS– Radio Télévision Belgique published, at the end of February, a report on the history of the conflict in Western Sahara. The report constitutes an opportunity for the channel to emphasize that this region of the world is still plagued by thorny international tensions, in particular due to the lack of resolution of the conflict between Morocco and the Polisario Front.
The report, thus, recalls that on February 27, 1976, the last Spanish soldier left what was then called the Spanish Sahara. This decision paved the way for the occupation of the territory by the neighbors of Western Sahara, in particular Morocco, which seized two thirds of the territory, without asking the opinion of the Sahrawis.
Since then, the Polisario Front, a national liberation movement, has entered into an armed struggle against the occupation of the territory by Morocco. Although Mauritania withdrew in 1979 recognizing the sovereignty of the Polisario Front, Morocco continues to occupy 80% of the desert territory, according to Belgian television.
The report also highlights that the situation remains unresolved, with countries recognizing the Polisario Front’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, while others support the Moroccan position, which is the “autonomy plan”.
In the midst of a European investigation into corruption concerning Morocco, the report by Radio Télévision Belgique, thus, highlights the importance of understanding the reasons which led the authorities in Rabat to offer bribes to members of the European Parliament. A complex story that continues to weigh on the current situation of Western Sahara.
The link to the report:
Sneak peek into Western Sahara cause
Western Sahara, noteworthy, is a Non-Self-Governing Territory of the UN that lies in the Sahel region bordered by Algeria, the Kingdom of Morocco, and Mauritania. This territory is home to the Sahrawis, a collective name for the indigenous peoples living in and around the region. They speak the Hassaniya dialect of Arabic. Similarly, many others also speak Spanish as a second language due to the region’s colonial past.
Western Sahara has been on the decolonization agenda of the UN and AU for more than fifty years. In 1963, Western Sahara was included on the list of non-self-governing territories under Article 73 of the UN Charter and the UN General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 1960 on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.
On November 6, 1975, Morocco launched the so-called ‘Green March’, a march of 350,000 Moroccans, a number four times the size of the Sahrawi population back then, into the territory of Western Sahara.
According to Adala UK, on that day, Morocco organized what it called a “Green March” to officially invade the North of Western Sahara moving 350,000 Moroccan settlers to the territory. This occupation coincided with the termination of the Spanish status as an Administrative Power, creating a vacuum that imposed on the UN to assume its responsibility there.
Subsequently, the UN Security Council deplored the holding of the march, calling upon Morocco to immediately withdraw all the demonstrators from the territory of Western Sahara; however, its effort was in vain.
The Polisario Front liberation movement continued its struggle to end all foreign occupation of its country and in 1976 formed a government-in-exile and declared the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic. In November 1984, the Polisario Front’s SADR was recognized by the then Organization of African Unity (OAU), now the African Union (AU), which led to the withdrawal of Morocco from the OAU in protest. In May 1991, the Polisario Front and Morocco ended many years of fighting following an UN-sponsored peace settlement, culminating in the establishment of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), which is assuming its responsibility till nowadays.
Despite a cease-fire in 1991 that put an end to the armed combat, Western Sahara remains a disputed territory. Nowadays, Morocco controls parts of the territory. However, the United Nations refers to Western Sahara as a non-self-governing territory and maintains a stance favoring self-determination for its people.
The UN body is attaching great interests to the Saharawi cause, expressing willingness to find a solution ensuring the self-determination of the Sahrawi people, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the Council.
After almost 30 years of compliance with a 1991 ceasefire, Morocco and the Polisario Front have resumed war in Western Sahara, as Morocco torpedoed the 1991 ceasefire through its act of aggression on the Saharawi Liberated Territories on 13 November 2020.
The Moroccan new act of aggression has not only ended the ceasefire and related military agreements but has also undermined the UN peace process in Western Sahara and plunged the region into another spiral of extreme tension and instability.
Both the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council have confirmed the breakdown of the 1991 ceasefire on 13 November 2020. In his report (S/2021/843; para 2) dated 1 October 2021, the UN Secretary-General acknowledged, among other things, “the resumption of hostilities” between the occupying state of Morocco and the Frente POLISARIO. For its part, in its resolution 2602 (2021) adopted on 29 October 2021, the Security Council noted “with deep concern the breakdown of the ceasefire” (PP 14).
The acknowledgment by both the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council of the breakdown of the 1991 ceasefire and the realities on the ground render any attempt to deny or underplay the seriousness of the current situation in MINURSO’s area of operation unacceptable and even misleading at a time when the occupying state of Morocco continues its aggression on the Sahrawi Liberated Territories and its deliberate targeting and killing of civilians and destroying their properties.
The final status of the state of Western Sahara will only be settled when a UN-supervised referendum is held in which the country’s inhabitants should exercise their legitimate right to self-determination.
For Algeria, the defender of the colonized peoples worldwide, Western Sahara is a question of decolonization between the Polisario Front and the Kingdom of Morocco given that this territory is inscribed on the list of Non-Self-Governing Territories, pending the implementation of the historic resolution 1514 of the General Assembly, which establishes the right of colonized peoples to self-determination and independence, and Algeria will always remain peace patron at the regional and international levels. Algeria has always reiterated its keenness to continue to support the Saharawi people to realize their right to self-determination and independence, considering this firm position as an international obligation, and Algeria will always assume its role as negotiations’ supervisor.
