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WEEKS 47 - 48 : 20.11.-03.12.2005 |
14-15.11.05,
maintaining the peace
Meeting in Tripoli of experts from countries of the North African
region (Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria and SADR) who agreed to put in
place a military peace-keeping force within the framework of the
African Union's Council for Peace and Security.
[agencies]
12-20.11.05,
Venezuela
Participation of a large Saharawi delegation led by the Minister of
Culture, Mrs Mariem Salek to the Cultural Festival of African peoples
in Venezuela.
An interparliamentary conference of Africa and Latin America was held
alongside the Festival in which a delegation of the Saharawi
parliament took part led by Aicha Abdallahi, MP.
A twinning agreement was signed between the Venezuelian town of
Libertador and the Saharawi daira of Tifariti.
[SPS]
20.11.05, The minister for the occupied zones of SADR attended the French Soclalists congress. [SPS]
23-26.11.05,
UJSARIO congress
800 delegates and over 500 guests took part in the 6th congress of
the Union of the Youth of Saguiet El Hamra and Rio de Oro, in the
wilaya of Dakhla. The congress took the name of Lembarki Hamdi and
its theme was "We will resist until we gain independence". A new
leadership and Secretary General were elected. Moussa Selma replaces
Mouloud Fadel.
In parallel an International Conference of solidarity with the
Saharawi people and the 13th National Festival of Culture were held.
Folk parades, exhibitions of paintings and photos, sporting
competitions and artistic activities took place over four days. The
"Diego Aguirre" prize rewarding the best work in the fields of
traditional games, popular stories, historical and geographical
drawings was given respectively to Hacim Brahim, Moustapha Houssein
Mohamed Moulaye and Mohamed Abdarahim.
An international demonstration calling for the destruction of the
wall of shame, erected by Morocco in Western Sahara took place at Oum
Legta (Farsia sector) in which about 200 Europeans were joined by
hundreds of Saharawis from the refugee camps.
The annual Conference of the Saharawi community in Mauritania took
place at the same time in the refugee camps.
[SPS]
24-25.11.05,
Barcelona
During the first conference of stateless nations from the
Euro-mediterranean region, organised in Barcelona with support
from the local government, its "first counselor" called for official
recognition of all stateless nations. Taking part in the conference
were representatives from Western Sahara, Palestine, Kabylia,
Kurdistan, Sardinia, Corsica and Sicily.
26.11.05,
National Secretariat
In a statement, the national Secretariat called for sanctions to be
imposed on the Moroccan regime to make it conform with international
law. The Saharawi executive body set up a committee to prepare for
the commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the proclamation of SADR
on 27 February 2006. The event will take place in Tifariti, in the
liberated territories, at the same time as the annual meeting of the
European Coordination of committees of support for the Saharawi
people. [SPS]
27/28.11.05,
Euromed summit, Barcelona
See a déclaration
of M. Sidati.[French]
29.11.05, Signing of a friendship pact between the communes of Tifariti and Campomarino (Molisa- Italy) [SPS]
29.11.05
The President of the European Parliament's intergroup for Western
Sahara, Karin Scheele and her Vice-President, Raul Romeva i Rueda,
called on Morocco for "coherence and recognition of the Saharawi
people's right to self-determination", the principle which is the
basis of international law.
29.11.-03.12.05,
Canaries visit for the Saharawi President
The visit began in Tenerife, and continued in Gran Canaria and
Fuerteventura. The objective was to inform local authorities,
political party representatives and public opinion on the current
situation in the Sahara. Mohamed Abdelaziz was accompanied by
several ministers and by M'hamed Khaddad, responsible for relations
with MINURSO. During a press conference on his arrival, the Saharawi
president asked the inhabitants of the Canary Islands to denounce the
repressive practices of Morocco and to go to occupied Western Sahara.
He expressed the view that the trial against the Saharawi human
rights defenders had no legal basis. [Diario
de Lanzarote]
Mohamed Abdelaziz launched an appeal to the heads of Canary businesses not to invest in occupied Western Sahara. The head of the autonomous government, Adan Martin, received the Saharawi president and declared that he couldn't prohibit private commercial relations. He recognised that investment in the exploitation of natural resources was not acceptable, adding that he wanted to maintain his collaboration with the Saharawi people, in the parameters fixed by the UN resolutions, Spain's foreign policy and the European Union. [Canarias7]
The presidential delegation also had talks with the President of the Confederation of Canary industries, the talks bore on future economic and commercial relations with SADR and the Canary Islands.
OCCUPIED TERRITORIES AND SOUTH MOROCCO
Demonstrations
carried on, causing more injuries and arrests: in El Ayoun on the
nights of 18-19 and 20-21, in Dakhla, Boujdour and Assa the
night of 20-21, in Smara and El Ayoun on 29.11.05.
The human rights defenders still at large are being actively sought.
Thus the house of Ahmed Sbai was searched and ransacked by the
police, his family threatened. In Smara, the authorities threatened
to move Saidi Mahmoud Bahaha and his whole family to Goulimine,
accusing them of sympathy with the intifada. Sidi Saieli is arrested
on 25.11.05. Led to the police station in handcuffs and blindfold,
after several days of interrogation he is moved to the Black Prison.
Saieli is a Saharawi human rights activist who was one of the civil
servants transferred against their will to Morocco in Autumn
2003.
A political detainee, Baba El Aarabi, number 26160, sentenced to four
years in prison on 12.07.05 for his activities in favour of human
rights, imprisoned at Aït Melloul near Agadir, has been on
hunger strike for two weeks. He demands improvement in his conditions
of detention and to be transferred to El Ayoun. [see also the
updated
list
of political prisoners]
21.11.05,
censorship of the internet
Access to internet sites of SPS, ARSO, Cahiers du Sahara,
AFAPREDESA and others relating to Western Sahara are impossible to
reach in Western Sahara and Morocco. ARSO informed RSF (Reporters
without Borders) and IFEX (Inernational Freedaom of Expression
eXchange, as well as the Swiss Foreign Affairs. On 02.12.05 RSF
denounced this serious violation of free expression.
[Statement]
[see also in French TelQuel,
no 201]
22.11.05,
trial of human rights defenders 1st session
The trial of 14 persons &endash; including 7 human rights defenders
&endash; started before the Court of Appeal in El Ayoun. Lawyers from
abroad were present, barristers Ines Miranda and Lola Travieso and a
judge, Carlos Viebla delegated by the Consejo general de la abogacia
Española, as well as three Spanish journalists and one German.
The trial was postponed until 30 November 2005 on the request of the
defence, who had not had the chance to study the dossiers.
The Moroccan authorities try to criminalise the human rights
defenders by invoking charges that are far removed from reality such
as setting up a criminal ring and laying explosives on the public
highway, damage to public property and violence towards the premises
of public officers etc [for more
details,
list of the accused and charges ]
23.11.05,
cosmetic ...
72 prisoners from the Black Prison of El Ayoun were transferred to an
unknown destination. Among them two Saharawi political prisoners,
Hadi Cherif, number 24035, sentenced to two years in prison and Fak
Mohamed Mahmud Fakak, number 25 289, sentenced to four years on
16.09.04. This measure, which follows other transfers and rapid
paintwork, aim to improve the situation in this overcrowded and
unhealthy prison (revealed by impressive
photos
broadcast in mid-September ) given probable forthcoming foreign
visits.
24.11.05,
Sahrawi human rights defenders under attack
Amnesty international publishes a detailed report on Saharawi
human rights defenders of whom 8 are imprisoned and in the process of
being tried. [report]
[>> arabic]
25.11.05
The USFP (l'Union socialiste des forces populaires) expressed its
concern about the tense situation existing in Western Sahara, this
could "influence negatively Morocco's diplomatic strategy and the
cause of "territorial integrity". This stance comes after the El
Ayoun branch of this party demanded an audience with the wali of El
Ayoun to condemn the behaviour of the police forces.
28.11.05
Amnesty international announces that they are sending a Tunisian
lawyer Samir ben Amor as an observer to the trial of the human rights
defenders on 30.11.05. [press
release]
30.11.05,
Report [French]
http://www.arso.org/sedillot011105.htm
Publication of the report of the French lawyer Mr Sedillot who
attended the trial of Ahmed Hammia as an observer in Dakhla on 3
August last.
30.11.05,
trial of human rights defenders 2nd sitting
After the first postponement from 22 to 30.11.05, the trial of the 14
Saharawis, including 7 well-known human rights defenders was again
postponed until 6 December, after a whole day of waiting without
explanation for the defending lawyers and international observers.
Everything allows one to think that this scandalous procedure is
aimed at discouraging foreign observers being sent to El Ayoun, some
for a second time. Those present were: five envoys from the Spanish
Bar, a delegate from the Barristers' Council of France, a Swiss
barrister representing the League of human rights and two Tunisian
barristers, one of whom was sent by Amnesty International. The
accused brought into the room at the end of the day, chanted slogans
in favour of independence, greeted their families in the audience and
thanked the international observers. [
ABC 01.12.05]
[plus
d'info
] [more
information
]
The Regional Council of Emilia-Romagna (Italy) denounced the illegality of the trial. In letters sent to the Italian ambassador in Rabat, and the Moroccan ambassador in Rome, the Regional Council made up of representatives of all the Italian political parties, declares itself deeply concerned by the conditions for holding this trial, which "does not rest on any crime liable to legal prosecution".
22.11.05,
Spain
"The defence of the rights of the Saharawi people is an aspect which
cannot be dissociated from the solution of the conflict", the Head of
the Spanish Government, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, in a
letter sent recently to the President of the Saharawi Republic,
Mohamed Abdelaziz. "The Spanish government will maintain its
commitment in the search for a lasting solution, in accordance with
international law, which is fair and mutually acceptable to the
parties, and within the United Nations framework.... The commitment
of the Spanish government in favour of the respect of human rights
has been reiterated in Morocco...", he revealed.
(SPS)
22.11.05,
European Union
On the occasion of the Fifth session of the EU-Morocco Association,
the EU published a declaration in which it supports "the efforts
deployed by the United Nations Secretary General towards a just,
lasting and mutually acceptable solution to the conflict [of
Western Sahara]...". The EU affirms that it "continues to
encourage the parties to work towards such a solution by cooperating
in a constructive and flexible manner with Mr Peter Van Walsum,
personal envoy of Mr. Kofi Annan". It "invites the parties to seize
the opportunity to get out of the present impasse" and considers that
the conflict of Western Sahara "remains a major obstacle in the way
of achieving greater regional stability, cooperation and prosperity".
The "Declaration" which commits the 25, affirms further that the EU
"remains preoccupied by the humanitarian aspects of the conflict of
Western Sahara". [Statement
by the European Union
- Fifth meeting of the EU-Morocco Association Council (Brussels, 22
November 2005)] [Communiqué/Commentaire
de M. Sidati]
25.11.05,
confidence-building measures
The exchange visits between Saharawi families in the camps and the
zones occupied by Morocco have started again. The Moroccan
authorities threatened members of Saharawi families who took part in
the visits and prevented Saharawi citizens from meeting the families
arriving in El Ayoun. Two people were arrested following a reception
organised on this occasion, Mustapha and Brahim Labrass, and
imprisoned in the Black Prison.
04.11.05,
Oil
The American oil company Kerr McGee extended until April 2006 its
contract with Morocco to continue its geological studies on the
off-shore oil potential of Western Sahara. The contract expired on
31.10.05.
24.11.05,
Stockholm
A seminar on natural resources and the conflict in Western Sahara was
organised in Stockholm by the Swedish Forum for Development, the
North Africa Institute, the Global Publication Foundation and ABF.
Taking part were Hans Corell, former deputy secretary general and
legal adviser to the UN, Toby Shelley, journalist and author of
"Endgame in the Western Sahara", Pedro Pinto Leite, international
lawyer, Magnus Schöldtz, from the Department of Middle East and
North Africa of the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and
Pål Wrange, legal adviser of the same department. Lennart
Wolgemuth, director of the North Africa Institute chaired the
discussions. You can hear and see the interventions on:
http://www.vastsahara.org/
26.11.05,
Disengagement
The largest Swedish pension fund, Seventh AP funds, has decided to
sell its shares worth 1.25 million kroner in Kerr McGee in February
next year. Another Swedish fund Ohman Fund, took the same decision
also for ethical reasons, Kerr McGee is carrying out activities in
Western Sahara regarded as illegal by the UN.
30.11.05,
Fishing agreement
The Belgian parliamentary intergroup "Peace for the Saharawi people"
organised a colloquium in the Senate in Brussels to denounce the
illegality of the Moroccan-EU fishing agreement and to raise
awareness among European parliamentarians two months before its
ratification. The colloquium showed that this accord, worth 140
million euros over four years, is marred by illegality because of the
occupation of Western Sahara. Pedro Pinto Leite, international
lawyer, put forward the thesis of the illegality of this agreement in
recalling that from the point of view of international law, the
exploitation of the Saharawi maritime wealth is a "violation of the
United Nations charter". The coordinator of "Western Sahara Resource
Watch", Erik Hagen, pointed out the opposition to this agreement by
Sweden, Finland, Denmark as well as Norway (non member of the EU). Mr
Sidati talked of the over-exploitation of this coast where 7000
trawlers and tens of thousand small fishing boats fish all the time
in the Saharawi waters, this represents a serious threat for the
ecosystem of the region.
21-22.11.05
On the occasion of an official visit to Morocco, Colonel Ely Ould
Mohamed Vall, President of the Military Council for justice and
democracy, which came out of the last coup d'état, three
conventions of cooperation were signed between the two countries.
"Mauritania considers that the best way to settle the question (of
the Sahara) in a lasting manner...is to find a consensual agreement
between the parties concerned", a proposition close to that defended
by Rabat. The Mauritanian NGO Democrats without borders, born after
the putsch, protested strongly against the fact that the Mauritanian
Premier had accorded an interview to the paper named "The
Moroccan Sahara",
thus breaking the traditional Mauritanian neutrality.
[Joint
Communiqué]
29.11.05
According to the Moroccan weekly Tel
Quel,
the King of Morocco, Mohamed V, and his son, the future Hassan II,
had planned in 1960 a military occupation of Mauritania. Fifteen
years before the Green March, Morocco was preparing the annexation of
the latter country, invoking its "historic sovereignty" over it as
over the Spanish Sahara and a part of the Algerian Sahara.
22.11.05
The organisation, Médicos del Mundo denounced the fact
that at least 135 Sub-Saharan Africans, abandoned in the desert by
the Moroccan authorities are still in Mauritania and the liberated
zones of SADR.
30.11.05
Ali Salem Tamek's wife, Aichatou Ramdan, has accused the President of
the Spanish government of being complicit in the policy of
repression exercised by Morocco in Western Sahara. Aichatou
Ramdan was invited by Amnesty International to the presentation of
its report on the external policy of the Spanish government and human
rights 2004-2005. [Europa
Press,
Spanish]
13.11.05,
HCR
The deputy representative of Algeria with the UN, Mourad Benmehidi,
said he was surprised by the decision of the HCR to revise the basis
of the number of Saharawi refugees. He asked High Commissioner
Guterres to proceed to a new evaluation. In his last report the UN
Secretary General revealed that WFP and the UNHCR had taken the
decision to "reduce the number of beneficiaries of aid from 158,000
to 90,000 persons, so as to concentrate on the most vulnerable
members of the population in the camps."
28.11.-02.12.05,
Zagreb
A Saharawi delegation took part in the 6th assembly of state parties
to the convention on anti-personnel mines.
Protest demonstrations against human rights abuses in Western Sahara and of solidarity with the Saharawi people have taken place in various towns of Spain and Italy (Florence, Rome &endash; with a sit-in outside the Moroccan embassy, Donostia, Gasteiz, Bilbao, Toledo, Malaga, Madrid, etc.)
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