03.01.96
Mr. Boutros-Ghali's special ambassador Mr. Chinmaya Gharekhan
conferred at Rabat with Mr. Abdellatif Filali and Mr. Driss Basri,
ministers of interior and of foreign affairs.
03.01.96
A Frenchman competing in the Granada-Dakar Rally was killed when his
lorry hit a suspected mine close to the rally route between Foum
el-Hassan (South-Morocco) and Smara (Western Sahara). Polisario Front
appealed several times in the last years not to cross the Western
Sahara territory because of the danger of mines.
04.01.96
US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Pelletreau, in charge of
Middle East and Maghreb, visited Morocco in december. According to
the newspaper "Jeune Afrique" he repeated, at an encounter with
moroccan political parties of opposition, that the referendum in
Western Sahara has to be transparent.
04.01.96
The European Commission has released an emergency food aid of 1.3
million $ for the sahrawi refugees. This new aid brings the total of
EU aid to refugees from the Western Sahara to 6.5 millions $ for
1995.
04.01.96
Mr. Chinmaya Gharekhan reaches the sahrawi refugee camps in company
of M. Erik Jensen, special representative of the U.N.
Secretary-General. Mr. Gharekhan explains to the sahrawi responsibles
the new U.N. proposals supposed to boost the peace process in Western
Sahara. He will continue his trip to Nouakchott (6.1.96) and El
Ayoun.
05.06.96
The U.N. special Ambassador is warmly welcomed by the population of
the refugee camp of Smara. In his speech the Wali declared
nevertheless: "We have no more concessions to bring to the U.N. (..)
There is no more place for patience".
06.01.96
Mr. M'Hamed Khaddad, president of the sahrawi Identification
Commission, in a declaration to an algerian press agency, cannot
evaluate the results of the visit of the Secretary-General's
Ambassador: "We must wait for the report of the Secretary-General on
next january 15 th. The U.N. will pursue its efforts in order to find
an agreement between the moroccan and the sahrawi position.