|
21.03.-03.04.2004 |
Mohamed
Abdelaziz visits the USA
24.03.04
The President of the SADR met the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at
the UN headquarters in New York. Abdelaziz recalled the POLISARIO
Front's total cooperation with the Security Council and with the
Secretary-General's Personal Envoy, and deplored Morocco's
obstructionism. Annan reaffirmed the UN's commitment to spare no
effort to hasten the coming of a just and definitive solution to the
Western Sahara conflict confirming to UN resolutions.
30.03.04
Mohamed Abdelaziz met James Baker, Personal Envoy of the UN
Secretary-General to Western Sahara, in Houston
Note: the mandate of MINURSO was prolonged until April 30th to permit
Baker to hold new consultations with Morocco, from whom the UN is
awaiting a response.
In a declaration made in New York to the Spanish press, the Saharawi president discussed the relationship between the attacks in Madrid and the terrorist trails leading to Madrid. He regretted that Morocco has become known as a country which "exports drugs and international terrorism to the world", a consequence of "the absence of democracy and the serious economic crisis that the Moroccan people are living through". (EFE 25.03.04)
26.03.04 During a lunch organised in Washington by the Defense Forum Foundation, and the Congressional & Foreign Policy Forum, as well as US parliamentarians, Mr Abdelaziz spoke of the latest developments in Western Sahara.>> full text
27-30.03.04
The National Union of Saharawi Women held its 11th seminar, "Women
and the Law", in the presence of guests and jurists from Arab nations
(Algeria, Syria and Lebanon). Themes covered included: family law,
the legal situation of Saharawi women in exile and under occupation,
and the consequences of international conventions on women's
situation. (SPS)
30-31.03.04
Prime Minister Abdelkader Taleb Oumar presided over a national
conference for the reorganisation of public services. The creation of
a salary scales and the grading and status of posts were the
principle themes developed. The Secretary of State for Public
Servants, Chaibani Abbas, also indicated that "co-operatives will
shortly see the light of day to promote work in agricultural
production, construction and various other areas."
26.03.04
Berlin
At a public conference entitled "Western Sahara, last colony in
Africa", German NGOs launched a letter-writing action to the Foreign
Ministry asking Germany, which holds the Security Council presidency
during April, to work for the Baker plan to be put into place and to
lead the other members, above all France, to play a constructive role
in the search for a peaceful and lasting solution. (Modell
Brief an deutschen
Aussenminister
)
Confidence-building measures - family visits
02.04.04
The UNHCR announced its satisfaction with the progress of the visits
between Saharawi families. From 9th April, weekly flights will take
place between Dakhla and Tindouf, for around 4 weeks, before linking
Smara, then Boujedor and then El Ayoun once again. More than 8500
people have now been registered. (UNHCR News)
>>special
update page
01.04.04
The president of the European coordination of support for the
Saharawi people, the Belgian senator Pierre Galand, addressed the
future head of the Spanish government, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero,
to transmit his hope that the new Spanish government will firmly
support the relevant UN resolutions, in order to bring about a just,
peaceful and lasting solution to the Western Sahara conflict, based
on the exercise of the Saharawi people's right to self-determination.
>> texto
completo español
The public prize from the Freiburg Film Festival (Switzerland) was awarded to the Spanish film "Cuentos de la guerra sahraui" by Pedro Rosado. Based on a true story, that took place during the war, this film tells the destiy of a young Spanish legionary who took the Saharawis' side. He fought the Moroccan and Mauritanian invasion in 1975-6 side by side with the Saharawis.
The Sundance Institute Doc Fund has selected 11 features for its first round of grant funding. Chosen this year is, u.a., for Work in Progress grants, Shantha Bloemen & JoMarie Fecci's "Western Sahara, Africa's Last Colony".
27.03.04
Two Spanish jurists, representatives of the Spanish Human Rights
Observatory who had followed several trials of Saharawi activists,
visited Ali Salem Tamek in Assa. Tamek, accompanied by the
ex-disappeared Brahim Dahane, and in the presence of several Saharawi
ex-political prisoners, discussed with his guests the various forms
of punishments and intimidation perpetrated by the Moroccan
authorities against Saharawi human rights defenders. He mentioned the
hysterical media campaign currently being run by the Moroccan press
against him and Saharawi human rights defenders, the confiscation and
denial of passports, the daily reprisals, as well as violations of
the human rights of civilians in occupied Western Sahara. During the
discussions - which lasted for over 8 hours - the Moroccan security
forces surrounded Tamek's house. (corr.)
UN - 60th session of the Commission on Human Rights, Geneva, 16th March-26th April 2004
The question
of Human Rights abuses in the occupied Western sahara was raised at
various points in the agenda, in the form of written reports and oral
interventions, during the treatment of questions of: the right to
self-determination; of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia;
of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading punishments and
treatment.
See the reports and interventions of: LIDLIP, France Libertés,
ISMUN, IUSY, Federación de Asociaciones de Defensa y
Promoción de Derechos Humanos, African Society of
international and comparative law, General Arab Women Federation,
International Association Against Torture, Women's International
Leaugue for Peace and Freedom, etc. See special
page
.
An appeal entitled "SOS" was addressed to the Commssion by the Collective of Human Rights Defenders - Territory of Western Sahara under Moroccan control (english)
28.03.04
Danish Peace Movement supports the legitimate right of the Saharawi
people to self-determination and independence.
Sponsored by the Peace Movement in Aalborg, a demonstration was
organised in which a stand on Western Sahara was erected as part of
the platform designed for on-going conflicts in the world. The
visitors of the stand were briefed on the different aspects of the
conflict in Western Sahara, particularly the latest developments
related to the UN endeavours to reach a peaceful, just and democratic
solution to the conflict. Many participants in the demonstration
expressed their support to the legitimate right of the Saharawi
people to self-determination and independence, while denouncing
Morocco's illegal occupation of parts of Western Sahara as well as
the Moroccan "wall of shame" that was described as a dreadful crime
against humanity.
02.04.04
Radioforpeace
Italy - Bologna: Independent radio at the service of Saharawi
refugees "Radioforpeace" will broadcast on short wave to the Saharawi
refugee camps from April 2nd, in Arabic, Spanish and Italian. This is
a project of COSPE, an independent radio station in Bologna,
Emilia-Romagna region, in collaboration with young Saharwai students
in Bologna and Saharawi national radio, to transmit news to Saharawis
in the camps, but also information on the camps for Europe and
occupied territories. Goals: Improvement of the flow of information
on the practical aspects of life and on development and aid projects,
contacts between families in the camps, the Occupied Territories and
the diaspora, NGOs, etc.
Every Friday from 13.00 to 14.00 (summer time, Europe), on Short Wave
15.665KhZ,from 12.00 - 13.00 in the refugee camps and 11.oo-12.00 in
the Western Sahara under Moroccan controle.
April 15, Amsterdam, Royal Institute for Tropical Affairs : presentation of the political travelbook from publishing house Bulaaq, Africa's last colony, travelling through the Western Sahara (in Dutch) from Nicolien Zuijdgeest, journalist, with film and debate. >> see more details
Saharawi Music: Groupe Mariem Hassan: 28.05.04: Afro-Pfingsten-Festival Winterthur, Suisse
NEW
PUBLICATIONS
[External
links to newspapers may not be valid after some days because the
servers are restarted]
Français
Les dépêches, articles, etc, sur Sahara-Info, liste de courrier (français et espagnol): http://es.groups.yahoo.com/group/sahara-info/messages
English
English publications on Sahara Update mailinglist: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Sahara-update/messages
Castellano
Todos los despachos, articulos de prensa, etc, son acessible en Sahara-Info, lista de correo (castellano y francés): http://es.groups.yahoo.com/group/sahara-info/messages
Italiano
[Summary
Weekly News,]
[Western
Sahara Homepage]