Spain’s Deputy PM Yolanda Díaz affirms support for UN, human rights of Sahrawis

By: Hana Saada

ALGIERS– In light of the upcoming elections in Spain, the Sahrawi issue appears to be one of the main topics in the political debate and a shoe stone for the coalition government between the Spanish Socialist Workers Party and Leonidas Podemos

It seems clear that the illegal position of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who clearly defends the Moroccan expansionist thesis on Western Sahara, is unwanted by the partners in the government, as well as the various Spanish political forces represented in the House of Representatives.

Yolanda Díaz, the deputy prime minister of Spain reaffirmed, at the Spanish Parliament that her position and that of her party regarding Western Sahara is to adhere to the framework of the United Nations and guarantee the human rights of the Saharawi people.

This position came in a reply to a question by the Vox party deputy Inés Cañizares, concerning the absence of Yolanda Díaz, from the controversial meeting in Morocco on February 2, when the King of Morocco refused to receive the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

The Deputy Prime Minister added “It seems to me that with regard to Western Sahara and Morocco, my position is well known, and we aspire to search for a just way out within the framework of the United Nations in a way that guarantees respect for human rights. I believe that this is what thousands of Spanish families aspire to, who embraced thousands of Sahrawi children during the summer holidays”.

It’s worth mentioning that Yolanda Díaz, didn’t participate in the meeting held on February 2, 2023, with Morocco government, as a protest against the position of the Spanish Prime Minister on the conflict in Western Sahara.

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.