Abuja (Nigeria), August 14, 2024 (SPS) – An important Sahrawi delegation participated in the International Conference for Eradication of Colonialism organized in the Nigerian capital Abuja on August 12 and 13, 2024, by the Institute of Society for International Relations Awareness (SIRA).
The International Conference brought together representatives of the regions concerned by decolonization, prominent political figures, including former ministers, parliamentarians, officials of strategic research centers, leaders of civil society organizations, students and representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Abuja.
The conference, chaired by former Nigerian Foreign Minister Professor Ibrahim Gambari, included detailed interventions by representatives of the colonized territories, including the history and reality of the struggles of these peoples.
It was also distinguished by honoring the Sahrawi people to present the main intervention, which was presented by Ambassador Oubi Boushraya Al-Bashir, Representative of the Polisario Front in Switzerland, the United Nations and International Organizations in Geneva, which included a detailed presentation on Western Sahara as the last colony in Africa, the prospects for decolonization, and the responsibility of the international community and the African Union in this regard.
Professor Ibrahim Gambari, during the opening speech and after addressing its objectives, which are to accompany the colonized peoples in their struggles for freedom and independence, stressed that "the two greatest achievements that he is proud of in his long political and diplomatic career are the pivotal role he played in accompanying the peoples of the south of the continent in their struggle against apartheid and his contribution to Nigeria's recognition of the Sahrawi Republic in 1984, thus paving the way for it to join the Organization of African Unity."
The Nigerian journalist and trade unionist, President of Society for International Relations Awareness (SIRA), Owei Lakemfa, during his introductory speech to the discussion tables, and after emphasizing "his institution's commitment to continuing the path of advocacy for the just causes of peoples, and the need to understand that the renewed nature of colonialism aimed at controlling the capabilities of peoples, stressed that the national independence of Africa will not be complete without completing the decolonization of Western Sahara”, referring to his experience during the visits that led him to Western Sahara and the efforts he is making within the framework of the Nigerian movement for solidarity with the Sahrawi people, which includes the most prominent political, trade union and associative actors in Nigeria.
The conference held in the presence of a Sahrawi delegation including Mr. Brahim Salem Boussif, Ambassador of the Sahrawi Republic in Nigeria, and Ambassador Oubi Boushraya Al-Bashir, Representative of the Polisario Front in Switzerland, the United Nations and International Organizations in Geneva.
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