Rome, Nov 18, 2013 (SPS) - The 38th International Conference of Support for the Sahrawi People (known as; EUCOCO), held in Rome from 15 to 16 November 2013, launched an international campaign against the Moroccan wall in Western Sahara, according to a declaration issued at the end of this conference.
Held under the motto: “together to remove the wall”, campaign aims “to muster all possible support from policymakers and international public opinion to compel the occupying Moroccan State to comply with the rules of international humanitarian law and neutralise the wall and the entire arsenal of destruction that it contains, which includes antipersonnel and anti-tank landmines and unexploded ordnance.”
Following the full text of the declaration:
“DECLARATION
International Campaign against the Wall of Moroccan Occupation in Western Sahara: Together to Remove the Wall
The participants in the 38th EUCOCO Conference held in Rome, Italy, from 15 to 16 November 2013,
Aware that Wall of Moroccan occupation, since it was built in the early eighties, still poses a great danger to the Sahrawi population on both sides of the wall,
Aware of the devastating and enduring humanitarian, social, cultural, economic, legal and environmental consequences that the wall has had on the life of the Sahrawi people on both sides of the wall,
Deeply concerned about the presence of over 7 million landmines and large quantity of cluster munitions and unexploded ordnance in Western Sahara that continue to pose a great danger to the Sahrawi population on both sides of the wall,
Aware of the situation of the Sahrawi landmine victims as living testimonies to the destructive magnitude of the wall and its impact on the lives of innocent civilians and of the need to carry out demining operations on both sides of the wall.
Noting with appreciation that the Frente POLISARIO has committed itself to banning the use of landmines and to cooperation in mine action through the adherence to the Geneva Call, whilst deploring that Morocco is still reluctant to sign the Ottawa Treaty on the Convention on Cluster Munitions,
Aware of the commendable work done so far by Sahrawi actors and the solidarity movement to denounce the wall and to raise public awareness of its multiple negative consequences,
Aware of the urgent need to establish a common framework to integrate, coordinate and follow up all activities and initiatives that will be undertaken out in this context in order to make them more visible and effective,
Denounce the Wall of Moroccan Occupation as a heinous crime against the human rights of the Sahrawi people and a huge obstacle to the exercise of their inalienable right to self-determination and independence.
Denounce the Wall of Moroccan Occupation as an illegal wall of separation whereby Morocco has turned the Sahrawi occupied territories into a large prison in which all forms of physical and psychological repression are systematically practiced with impunity.
Denounce the Wall whereby Morocco is trying to entrench its military siege and information blackout imposed on the Sahrawi occupied territories and to impose its colonial fait accompli in Western Sahara.
Call on all states to cease their sales and supply of arms to Morocco, which uses them mainly to consolidate its military presence in Western Sahara.
Reaffirm the applicability of the rules of the international humanitarian law to Western Sahara as an occupied territory and call upon Morocco, the occupying power, to comply with the relevant rules of the international humanitarian law and other human rights instruments.
Decide to launch an international campaign against the Moroccan Wall in Western Sahara, which will be known as “the International Campaign against the Wall of Moroccan Occupation in Western Sahara: together to remove the wall”.
The overarching objective of the campaign is to muster all possible support from policymakers and international public opinion to compel the occupying Moroccan State to comply with the rules of international humanitarian law and neutralise the wall and the entire arsenal of destruction that it contains, which includes antipersonnel and anti-tank landmines and unexploded ordnance.
Affirm their commitment to put in place strategies of action and mobilise all necessary resources to carry out the campaign and to achieve its objectives in the short and long run.
Call on all stakeholders to participate energetically not only in the preparations for the campaign but also in all stages of the implementation of the plans and action strategies of the campaign in order to ensure its effectiveness and continuity. (SPS)
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