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WEEKS 05-06 : 29.01.-11.02.2006 |
24-29.01.06,
World Social Forum, Caracas
The Polisario Front representative in Venezuela, El Haj Ahmed, spoke
at a seminar entitled Western Sahara, an unfinished decolonization.
He called for â•þintervention by the international
community to protect Saharawi civilians from the savage repression
practised by the Moroccan authorities in the occupied territories and
in southern Morocco. This seminar was organised by the Organisation
for solidarity with Africa, Asia and Latin America (OSPAAAL) and the
Spanish Federation of institutions in solidarity with the Sahara
(Fedissah).
In their addresses to the seminar, the President of OSPAAAL, Jaime
Ballesteros, and his coordinator, Remedios Garcias, as well as their
deputies Gustavo Hernandez and Carlos Ortega, president of the
Venezuelan parliamentary group of friendship with the Saharawi
people, "reaffirmed their solidarity with the Saharawi people in
their struggle for liberation, condemning the human rights abuses by
Morocco in the occupied territories of Western Sahara".
29.01.06
Representatives of SweFOR (Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation) and
SERPAJ-AL (Servicio Paz y Justicia, America latina), NGOs for
non-violence visiting the Saharawi refugee camps, expressed their
support for the "peaceful struggleâ" of the Saharawi people to
recover their "legitimate rights to self-determination and
peaceâ". [SPS]
04.02.06
The Saharawi Red Crescent launched an urgent appeal to all
humanitarian organisations. It advises that the "þback-up supplies in
basic foodstuffs, broached during January 2006, will be exhausted in
the coming month of March". Pharmaceutical supplies, financed in
recent years by the European Bureau for humanitarian aid (ECHO), "are
all used up". The budget devoted by ECHO for medication represents
only 25% of the primary needs of the refugees , and the European
bodyþhas not yet supplied this assistance due last November.
[SPS
05.02.06]
07.02.06,
International Conference
An international conference on the cultural heritage of SADR took
place in the camps with the participation of scholars from the
universities of Girona, Madrid and the Argentinian university of
Fasta as well as Saharawi intellectuals. The
university group from Girona,
comprising Gabriel Alcalde, Joan Lluis Alegret, Carlos Serra, Narcis
and Joaquim Soler, presented a brochure entitled "The prehistoric
rupestrian paintings of Rekeiz Lemgasem (Zemmour- Western Sahara)"
and expounded on the archeological research work done in the
liberated zones of SADR, which was also done by Beatriz
Carbonell
from the Argentinian university of Fasta. Saharawi and Spanish
anthropologists and researchers spoke on: "Saharawi culture from the
point of view of development anthropology". This group includes
Professeur Juan Carlos Gimeno Martin, David De Juan Canales, Luis
Marin Pozuelo, in collaboration with Saharawi researchers Moh. Saleh
Nafe Abeid, Mrs Fanna Saleh Dat, Mrs Fatimetu Brahim and Mrs Tfarrah
Mohamed Bachir.
08.02.06,
Ecuador
Ecuador and SADR announced the re-establishment of diplomatic
relations between the two countries, the foreign ministers from the
two countries declared in a joint communiqué. Ecuador first
recognised SADR in 1983 but had withdrawn its recognition on 11 June
2004.
OCCUPIED TERRITORIES AND SOUTH MOROCCO
14.01.06, El
Ayoun
Laassairi Said, arrested with others after the funeral of Lembarki in
the building housing MINURSO, where he was attempting to take refuge,
was mistreated and detained for 48 hours in the police station.
Laassairi denounced the events in letters sent to the head of
MINURSO, to the public prosecutor of the court and to the local
official of AMDH, accompanying his letters with a medical certificate
testifying to his injuries. [documents]
30.01.06, El
Ayoun
Ali Salem Mohamed Yahdih Mohamed Saleh died in El Ayoun at the age of
100. He took part in the first revolutionary movements in the Sahara.
Arrested on 26.02.76, he was spent time in several Moroccan secret
prisons and was released in 1991, after 16 years of disappearance.
Two of his eight sons were killed in combat in the first years of
Moroccan occupation, one of his daughters is a former disappeared and
political prisoner, Fatimetu Ali Salem.
25.01.06,
Boujdour-Dakhla
The Saharawi families from the camps who came to Dakhla and Boujdour
as part of the exchange visits organised by MINURSO were warmly
welcomed by the population sporting SADR flags. The police blocked
the streets leading to the reception. Two  people who
came to welcome the Saharawi families were intentionally knocked down
by a Moroccan police car.
26.01.06,
increase in sentence
Sidi Ahmed N'dour, a Saharawi political prisoner, was sentenced on
appeal by the Moroccan court in El Ayoun to 10 months in prison. At
the court of first instance his sentence had been 4 months.
26.01.06, El
Ayoun
The majority of educational establishments, especially the
lycée Mohamed V and Alfateh school, were decorated
 with SADR flags. The response by the Moroccan forces of
repression was immediate.
26.01.06, El
Ayoun
In a statement Saharawi political prisoners in the prisons of El
Ayoun, Smara, Ait Melloul, Kenitra, Tiznit and Kalaat Sghrana
denounced the mistreatment inflicted by the GUS on Louali Amaydane
and Sidi Ahmed Elmoussaoui, in the car which was taking them to the
Black Prison following their sentencing in the appeal court on 24
January 2006. The political prisoners declared themselves victims of
inhumane treatment, quoting the cases of Haddi Sidi Ahmed Elkaynane,
tortured and threatened with death in the prison of Ait Melloul in
the presence of the Royal prosecutor, Ali Elagdadi, humiliated and
tortured by agents of Moroccan intelligence in Tiznit, and Sid Ahmed
Aalouate, badly treated and humiliated during a stay in hospital by
members of the GUS in the Black Prison. As a sign of protest, the
Saharawi prisoners decided on a 48 hour hunger strike starting on
31.01.06.
28.01.06, El
Ayoun
The Moroccan secret services on the lookout for independence
demonstrators interrogated several Saharawi families in Maatallah
quarter.
29.01.06
A Saharawi citizen, Elhaiba Mohamed Mahmoud suspended his hunger
strike, the authorities having acceded to his request to return to El
Ayoun.
29.01.06,
Smara
An independence demonstration through the streets of Smara, with SADR
flags and slogans, was brutally dispersed by the forces of
repression.
29.01.02, El
Ayoun
Ismaili Mohamed M'Barek, arrested for having demonstrated peacefully
in favour of independence, was imprisoned in the Black Prison while
waiting for his trial, the date of which has not been fixed.
[SPS]
30.01.06,
Human Rights
The Committee for the respect of freedom and human rights in Western
Sahara (CORELSO), Paris, asked the Moroccan government to give back
to the Saharawi human rights activist, Aminatou Haidar "all her civic
rights, including the right of expression, of demonstration and of
movement".
The Association of families of Saharawi prisoners and disappeared
(AFAPREDESA), expressed its concern over the "serious and
preoccupying situation" of Saharawi political prisoners in Moroccan
prisons where torture and mistreatment are common
currency.[comunicado]
The Saharawi community in France requested "urgent intervention" from
the French government with Morocco in order to put an end to its
"crimes" in Western Sahara.
The former political prisoner, Aminatou Haidar, denounced in a
statement, â•þunfair trials of the Saharawi political
prisonersâ•ÿ in Western Sahara, and called for the
international community to "protect defenceless Saharawi
civilians".[SPS]
31.01.06,
urgent appeal
The international secretariat of the World Organisation against
Torture, OMCT, launched an appeal because of the worsening human
rights situation in Western Sahara. [appeal]
31.01.06,
European Union
Several MEPs asked the European Commission if it had any intention of
intervening asking for the sentence of Ali Salem Tamek to be
reconsidered. His prison sentence was lengthened by the appeal court
on 24.01.06.
31.01.06,
European Parliament
The mission planned to visit Western Sahara this month has been
postponed until a date yet to be fixed. The Moroccan and Algerian
governments had not replied to the requests for authorisation. Their
ambassadors will be called to explain shortly.
31.01.-01.02.06,
El Ayoun
Demonstrations in favour of independence and releasing Saharawi
prisoners, during the night the forces of repression intervened and
arrested four young Saharawis, Said Baha, Youssef Daoudi, Amidan
Lehbib, Jabar Abdelvetah. During interrogation they were accused of
drug trafficking and implication in illegal immigration. They were
warned that they could be accused of these crimes if they continue to
take part in independence demonstrations.
01.02.06,
Human Rights
"The central executive of AMDH reiterated its appeal for the release
of all detainees of opinion and Saharawi political prisoners" in a
statement and denounced "arbitrary arrests of Saharawis".
02-03.02.06,
Goulimine
About 300 Saharawis organised a demonstration outside the town
offices, violently repressed by security forces, who used tear gas,
including CS gas, known for its toxicity. Several people were
injured. The next day another march brought together about a thousand
Saharawis, again dispersed violently by the forces of order. The
demonstrators chanted slogans in favour of the Polisario Front, for
self-determination of Western Sahara and the release of Saharawi
prisoners. They denounced the discrimination suffered by Saharawis
regarding employment and housing and demanded work for the
unemployed. Many were injured.
03-04.02.06,
Dakhla
At least one person was arrested and seven human rights activists
wounded during clashes during the night between Moroccan forces of
repression and Saharawi citizens who called for the right of the
Saharawi people to self-determination and independence. Fourteen
other persons were savagely mistreated, another, Bela Bouaila, was
arrested and Saharawi homes were damaged.
04.02.06,
Smara
Saharawis organised a sit-in of solidarity with the population of
Dakhla.
04.02.06, El
Ayoun
Three Saharawi students from Lemsala lycée, Chtouki
Moulaye Ahmed, Dah Hassan and El Ghali Lechgar were arrested and
interrogated for over six hours before being released. A
demonstration also took place in Mohamed VI lycée.
[SPS]
05.02.06, El
Ayoun
Arrest of Bal-la Cheijatu Ali Salem, interrogated for nearly eight
hours and set free after the policemen urinated on him.
06.02.06,
Goulimine
Thousands of demonstrators organised another march towards the town
offices, interrupted once again by the forces of repression. Clashes
lasted over four hours. Again many injured. Four persons arrested,
Rgueibi Lakhlipha, Lakraimi, Moustapha, Chekraoui Bachir and Aabani
Brahim.
A Saharawi human rights activist, Lamin Said Mohamed Sahel, sought
for several months for his participation in demonstrations in El
Ayoun, was arrested on 6 February 2006 as the demonstration was
happening, and his house was being searched and ransacked, his
computer, a telephone, CDs, books were taken away by
police.
06.02.06, El
Ayoun
Electrical voltage for the town was augmented without warning, in
order to prevent young Saharawis from hanging SADR flags on electric
wires, which caused damage to a large number of computers.
07.02.06, El
Ayoun
Three girls, Chikha Salama Ould Mnayssir, Hjabbouha Salama Ould
Mnayssir (17 years) and Ghlaya Salama Ould Mnayssir (14 years) were
attacked by the Moroccan forces of repression, who broke into their
house in the centre of El Ayoun, where a demonstration for
self-determination and independence had taken place. The mother of
the girls, Khadijattou Ali Omar Bachir, has disappeared as well as
her son Abdallah Salama Mnayssir (22 years).
06.02.06,
Prisoners' letter to Kerr-McGee
Saharawi political prisoners sent a letter to the CEO of American oil
company, Kerr-McGee asking him not to renew the contract signed with
the Moroccan authorities which expires in April. These activities in
Saharawi territorial waters are taking place without the consent of
the population are illegal and violate international law, they
recalled.[letter]
09.02.06, El
Ayoun
Brahim Dahane, Saharawi political prisoner, human rights defender and
president of the Saharawi Association of victims of human rights
abuses committed by Morocco, appeared before the magistrate. He was
arrested on 30 October 2005, because of his activities as human
rights defender in Western Sahara and his support to the family of
the martyr Hamdi Lambarki. The Moroccan authorities falsified the
police report which Dahane has not seen or signed and are trying to
make him guilty of penal offenses.
09.02.06,
appeal
Referring to the deterioration in the human rights situation in the
occupied territories, the Norwegian human rights Foundation, Rafto
send an appeal to the Norwegian government. It asked them to put
pressure on Morocco to put an end to inhuman treatment such as
torture, humiliations, threats to human rights activists and
political prisoners, to order a re-trial for the 14 human rights
defenders unjustly sentenced, to authorise representatives from the
Norwegian government, NGOs and media to have free access to the
territory of occupied Western Sahara. [Press
statement Rafto Foundation]
Mission of
observation
The 11 lawyers, coming from five countries, deliver the report of
their mission of observation on 29-30 November 2005 and 11-15
December 2005, concerning the trial of the 14 Saharawi political
prisoners before the Criminal Court of El Ayoun.
[rapport
du collectif]
[rapport
de Me D. Leuenberger]
30.01.06,
Spain
The Secretary of State for Spanish Cooperation, Leire Pajin, declared
that Spain has a "historic obligation" towards the Saharawi people,
affirming that his country should work to find a lasting and just
solution to the conflict in Western Sahara.
01.02.06,
letter from Morocco to the Security Council
In a letter sent to the UN Secretary General and to the president of
the Security Council, the Moroccan minister of Foreign Affairs,
Mohamed Benaissa, writes that Morocco is disposed to begin
negotiations as soon as possible and that it will present very soon,
a proposal for autonomy to this effect. He protests as well about
what he calls the creation of a fait accompli in the buffer zone, by
artificially putting buildings, by holding diplomatic activities
there and even going so far as to conclude contracts of convenience
with oil companies.[About
the letter by MAP, 02.02.06]
03.02.06
Saharawi response
The President of the Saharawi Republic, Mohamed Abdelaziz, reaffirmed
in a letter to the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, that the
Saharawis reject any proposal for resolving the conflict in Western
Sahara, which does not respect the inalienable right of the Saharawi
people to self-determination. According to the Saharawi president,
Rabat cannot claim to be a sovereign power or administrative power
over Western Sahara, which is under military
occupation.[Letter]
10.02.06
The Spanish minister for foreign affairs, Miguel Angel Moratinos,
received Peter van Walsum in Madrid. He is the personal
representative of the UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, for Western
Sahara.
27, 28 et
29.01.06, Preparatory conference for the Maghreb Social Forum
For three days 400 altermondialists from countries of the Maghreb and
associations connected with immigration met in Bouznika to discuss
orientations for their common action. A Saharawi delegation took part
in the work, led by six Saharawi activists including five from El
Ayoun and Smara (Lahcen and Lahoussine Moutik, Lahbib and Abdessalam
Eddymaoui, N'guia Bouda, Mohamed Ahmed Tirsal), as well as thirteen
students from Casablanca. The delegation received a warm welcome from
the participants. Two Saharawis were designated as rapporteurs,
namely Bachir Moutik (who had come from France to represent CORELSO)
rapporteur of the workshop on peace and resolution of conflicts, and
Lahcen Moutik, rapporteur of the workshop on raising awareness and
enlargement, whose aim was to find the ways of mobilising civil
society in the Maghreb and contacting NGOs who were not able to
attend this first meeting.[Maghreb Social Forum
website]
02.02.06
The French judge, Philippe Courroye, enquiring into misappropriation
in the UN "Oil for Food" program for Iraq sent, in December,
international letters rogatory to Morocco bearing on the conditions
under which Jean-Bernard Mérimée, the French Ambassador
to Morocco 1987 to 1991, could have been given land at Ouarzazate by
Hassan II and above all, the remunerations he received from the BMCE.
[LEJOURNAL
HEBDO].
[see also "Kofigate"
by K. Beyrouk]
02-02-2005
A Mauritanian-Algerian technical committee of public works examined
the possibility of constructing a road 1000km long which would link
the locality of Choum, in the Mauritanian region of Adrar, to
Tindouf. The meeting allowed a framework agreement to be prepared of
cooperation between the institutions of the two countries.
01.02.06,
European Union
Written question to the European Union Council by MEPs Caroline Lucas
et de Raül Romeva on the question of the delimitation of fishing
zones in the new fishing agreement between the EU and
Morocco.
03.02.06,
Denmark
During a plenary session of the Danish Parliament, on the
exploitation of fishing resources according to the European
Unionâ•ús fishing agreement with Morocco, Hans Christian
Schmidt, Danish Minister for Agriculture and Fishing, made clear that
his government, along with other European countries, have asked for
assurances from the European Commission on the subject of the
legality of this agreement in terms of international law respecting
the status of Western Sahara as a non-self-governing territory.
Recalling "their position of support for the right of the Saharawi
people to self-determination as well as their support for the efforts
of the United Nations towards a just and lasting solutionâ",
the Danish parliamentarians, from all political tendencies, affirmed
that the said agreement "should conform with international law and
respect the yet to be defined status of Western Sahara".
[SPS]
06.02.06.
The SADR government expressed satisfaction at the announcement made
by the oil company Baraka, to put an end to its exploration
activities in the region of Cap Juby (off-shore from Tarfaya, which
touches the territory of SADR). [Declaration
of the
SADR government, 06.02.06]
07.02.06
Ecological organisations denounce the presence of a high level of
radioactivity in food additives for stock extracted from the
phosphate coming from Western Sahara, of which the content of
radioactive elements (uranium 238, polonium 210 et plomb 210) is well
known.
Australia
On Wednesday 8 February, Kamal Fadel, Polisario Front representative
based in Sydney, was the guest speaker at the Australian Fabian
Society in Melbourne. He outlined the history of Western Sahara, from
the days of the Council of the Forty (Ait Arbain) to Spanish
colonization ending with the Green March and military invasion by
Morocco. Helen Hill of the Victoria University responded, commenting
on the similarities between the case of Western Sahara and that of
East Timor. She was hopeful that history would develop in such a way
as to provide Western Sahara also with its chance for
independence.
Humanitarian
Aid
In the Basque Country, 300 tonnes of emergency aid have been
collected and will be sent to the camps, while in Andalusia, the
population has donated 1,000 tonnes which will also be taken to the
camps.
--> détails voir l'AGENDA mis à jour.
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