As a new round of talks on Western Sahara, aimed at breaking the stalemate, begin on Monday, campaigners have called on the United Nations Security Council to take action to protect the thousands of inhabitants of a protest camp on the outskirts of El Aauin.
On the eve of the two-day UN sponsored talks in New York, the Western Sahara Campaign and the Free Western Sahara Network issued a joint statement highlighting the urgent need for human rights monitoring in the disputed territory, particularly in light of concerns for the well being of an estimated 20,000 Saharawi citizens who have spent a month in the camp in protest at the discrimination they suffer under the Moroccan occupation.
The Moroccan Security Forces have surrounded the camp and it has been widely reported they are preventing food, water and medicines from reaching protesters. On the 24th October a 14 year old boy, El Garhi Nayem, was shot dead when the Moroccan Security Forces opened fire on the vehicle he was travelling in as it attempted to enter the camp.
Journalists have been banned from entering the camp and on Saturday two Spanish MPs from the Basque party arriving in Casablanca to visit the camp had their passports and tickets seized on arrival and were refused entry to the country.
Stefan Simanowitz of the Free Western Sahara Network said today: "By taking a firm stand the United Nations can ensure that this latest round of informal talks will move the protracted crisis in Western Sahara towards a resolution. We are heartened by the fact that Martin Nesirky, Ban Ki Moon's spokesperson, said last week that solving the conflict in the Western Sahara is a "priority for the United Nations" but we need their rhetoric to be matched by their actions. The Moroccan occupation has been allowed to continue in breach of international law and of UN resolutions for over 35 years and the UN's peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara remains the only contemporary peacekeeping mission without a mandate to monitor human rights."
WESTERN SAHARA CAMPAIGN UK
The Western Sahara Campaign works in solidarity with the Saharawi people to generate political support in order to advance their right to self-determination and to promote their human rights.
Our role is to lobby the UK Government and the EU. You can help us to ensure the UK does not ignore the voice of the Saharawi people.
Follow the news about EU's illegal fisheries in Western Sahara
