As my regular readers know I am a supporter of independence of Western Sahara from Morocco……I visited there in the 80’s when I worked in the region and fell in love with the people and land……
I promised my friends there in Western Sahara that I would do what I could to help the movement…..
Please check this out and if you feel that you can support their goals…..please lend a hand……
TAKE ACTION: Protect rights and resources in Western Sahara | Western Sahara Action Forum.
Spain is illustrating that they are concerned about the different conflicts from around the world…..their Parliament is schedule for a vote to recognize Palestine as a state…..and then this demonstration.
I wish more countries would show such concern for the Sahawaris….the people of Western Sahara…
The Us is mealy mouth about support….mainly because Morocco is a strong ally in North Africa and we do not want to alienate the monarchy….
Spain is showing extremely good taste, IMO………..
Thousands protest in Spain for Western Sahara independence – Yahoo News.
This is a letter written by a Moroccan journalist in support of Western Sahara……a speech made recently by the king of Morocco could have far reaching consequences……
A very good letter written by a concerned citizen of Morocco……..calmer heads need to prevail…..a resumption of violence will only heard the innocents caught in the middle of this conflict.
May I suggest that Morocco relinquish all claims to a region that does not belong to them……Western Sahara deserves their independence……
We all have places that mean more top us than others……mine is Western Sahara…..,..for haters the desert is a hot, unforgiven landscape of muted brown colors…..but for me it is a wealth of colors……tans, purples, light blues…..it is a fascinating place that the sand and dunes talk at night and even sings at times……a place I still miss to this day.
This post may not be that interesting to most but since my time in the region I keep an eye on the doings and report what I find..Western Sahara holds a special place in my heart and memories…..I am pleased to see the rest of the world see the damage Morocco is doing by their heavy handed actions against the country…….Today I will post several articles on Western Sahara to help my readers understand the situation.
For my new followers let me explain…..in the late 70’s and early 80’s I worked in the Middle East and North Africa….I was employed by a Spanish newspaper as a researcher/analyst.
During this time I was sent to Western Sahara after the annexation by Morocco after Spain pulled out of its former colony……a war, a guerrilla war broke out because the people of Western Sahara wanted their independence. I was sent to try an establish contact with the Polisario, the group leading the opposition to Morocco. I was to try and get their side of the story.
What I found was a people that were warm, friendly, giving and most of all determined.
For years there has been a ceasefire while both sides try to hammer out a solution……and that is where I pick it up today….as reported in Middle East Monitor…….
The Polisario Front yesterday threatened to “return to the armed struggle” against Morocco, in reaction to the Moroccan King Mohammed VI’s statement that the Western Sahara will remain under his sovereignty.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Polisario Front separatist movement, Mohamed Salem Ould Salek, issued a statement in Algeria which confirmed: “The Polisario Front’s commitment to peaceful resolution to this issue despite the Sahrawi pressure to return to armed resistance in the struggle for freedom and independence.
“In the event that international community and Morocco fail to comply with international regulations and legitimate resolutions, the Saharawi people will have no option but to return to armed struggle,” Salek confirmed.
King Mohammed VI warned on Thursday that the Western Sahara will remain under Moroccan sovereignty “until God inherits the earth and everything within it”, stressing that “the autonomy initiative is the most that Morocco can provide” to resolve this conflict.
This tension could reignite hostilities that have been smoldering for years……
The Saharawis, the people of Western Sahara, want independence and not some self-governing region of Morocco…..this situation could get ugly quick…..my feeling is that they deserve their independence and the world should be behind their fight 100%.
Please check out the country profile….it will give you an excellent look at the history and conditions…..and help explain what the situation is all about…..
BBC News – Western Sahara profile.
Western Sahara has my support and I will do what I must to help them in the struggle for independence.
I know not many people will care about Western Sahara……but that does not matter…..why? Because I care………
After I finished my studies in International relations I applied for a job with the UN in Tunisia….I did not get it but I did get an offer from a Spanish newspaper…..which I accepted and that allowed me to travel in North Africa and the Middle East…..the area of my studies…..and while I was working in Morocco I worked on a piece about a disputed area called Western Sahara (I have written about this area in the past….in case one is interested)…….and I got the chance to visit the area and got to know several people within the freedom movement and the people, the Sahrawis…..a great, generous and passionate people. Since Spain pulled out in 1974 the land has been claimed by Mauritania and Morocco, who has possession today….but the freedom movement has continued and the US is siding with Morocco, who has promised limited self rule for the area……
Morocco then fought a war against an indigenous Sahrawi group of fighters, the Frente Polisario, which ended in 1991 when the UN brokered a ceasefire and pledged to hold an independence referendum within six months.
The referendum has still not been held. Morocco retains control of Western Sahara and its lucrative phosphate and fishing resources. The country is now the last United Nations-designated “non-self-governing territory” in Africa, and is home to between 100,000 and 140,000 Moroccan military personnel (despite a total population of just 500,000).
Morocco’s reigning King Muhammad VI has said that “the issue of our Saharan provinces is central” in order “to complete our territorial integrity”.
In April, Amnesty International reported that: “Sahrawis advocating self-determination for the people of Western Sahara remained subject to restrictions on their freedoms of expression, association and assembly, and leading activists continued to face prosecution.”
Despite the danger of documenting unrest – anyone caught filming or taking pictures of protests in Western Sahara faces punishment, and usually the destruction of the camera equipment – Coordination Gdeim Izik say they have video evidence of the attacks on their protests.
In one video seen by this reporter, a 55-year-old woman is savagely beaten and kicked to the floor by two riot policemen; in another, uniformed military personnel beat a young girl so severely she had to be hospitalised, according to her friends. A senior member of the group, Sidi Muhammad Ramadiy, pointed to the screen and said: “This is human rights for Morocco.”
The group’s de facto leader, Lahib Salhi, said: “We live here always under the eyes, and under the clubs of the Moroccans. The world must do what it promised to do when the UN first came: hold the referendum, and give us the chance to live as we wish to live.”
Many Sahrawis in fact blame the international community. “The Moroccans make the claim on our land because they can, because they are strong and because they are supported by France, the United States, and Britain,” said Salhi. “But they know the claim is false. The Mauritanians once claimed Western Sahara for themselves. Where are they now? How much longer will the world permit this injustice?”
What happened to the US and their support for democracy and freedom?