Algeria, September 27, 2023 (SPS) - The Algerian Minister for Relations with Parliament, Ms. Besma Azouar, renewed on Tuesday, at the headquarters of her ministerial department, during receiving a delegation from the Sahrawi National Council, Algeria’s position in support of the Sahrawi issue and the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination in accordance with Security Council resolutions.
In her speech during the reception, the Algerian minister affirmed Algeria’s position towards the issue of Western Sahara, a position she described as “a solid, does not change and is consistent with Security Council resolutions and its relevant regulations issued in this regard.”
In this context, Mrs. Besma Azouar cited the confirmation of the Algerian President, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, concerning Algeria’s position towards Western Sahara before the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, calling for the necessity of reaching a final liquidation of the phenomenon of colonialism with the last African colony by granting the Sahrawis their basic right to self-determination through a free and fair referendum consistent with the UN-African settlement plans adopted by the Security Council in 1991, approved by both parties, and which is awaiting implementation.
Mrs. Azouar stressed the responsibility of the United Nations to "preserve the credibility of its decisions, with the duty to collectively realize that supporting the full implementation of its decisions is to preserve the prestige of this organization."
In this context, the Algerian Minister for Relations with Parliament renewed Algeria's support for the efforts of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and his personal envoy to revive the process of direct negotiations in order to organize a referendum that would lead to the self-determination of the Sahrawi people in accordance with Security Council resolutions.
During the meeting, Mrs. Besma Azouar presented an overview of the Algerian parliamentary experience and the activities and tasks assigned to her ministerial department, especially those related to ensuring the functional relationship between the two chambers of Parliament, on the one hand, and the government, on the other hand, within the framework of functional integration between the authorities.
The Sahrawi parliamentary delegation benefited from a “qualitative” training session supervised by the Algerian National People’s Assembly and touched on many topics related to parliamentary affairs, especially those related to parliamentary diplomacy aimed at defending just causes in the world, most notably the Sahrawi issue, and also ways and methods of drafting and conducting parliamentary sessions and other parliamentary tasks.
For his part, Salek El Mehdi, Vice President of the Sahrawi National Council, confirmed that the training course the Sahrawi representatives benefited from is “a very important step in the framework of raising the qualifications of the Sahrawi institutions that are in the process of building and developing in the midst of the liberation war.”
He added that "this step is important and positive, and the representatives benefited from it, especially with regard to the axes that are considered a priority for us at the present time, such as parliamentary diplomacy, which is truly an important weapon at this time," expressing his hope to continue strengthening this cooperation between the two parties.
SPS 110/T