Madrid, November 13, 2015 (SPS) – the President of the Sahrawi Republic, Secretary-General of the Frente POLISARIO, Mr. Mohamed Abdelazizurged today the United Nations and Spain to assume their responsibilities for the decolonization of the last colony in Africa, in his speech to the 40th session of the International Conference for support and solidarity with the Saharawi people (EUCOCO).
Following is the full text:
Speech by Mr Mohamed Abdelaziz, President of the Sahrawi Republic, Secretary-General of the Frente POLISARIO at the Opening of the 40th European Conference for Support and Solidarity with the Sahrawi people,
Madrid,13November 2015
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today the International European Conference for Support and Solidarity with the Sahrawi People gathers at its fortieth session. It has been forty years of struggle and hard work in a noble battle for defending freedom, justice, dignity, humanity and the values of peace as well as support for an oppressed people subjected to colonisation, occupation, exileand genocide.
We would like to express my thanks and appreciation to all those who have contributed to the organisation of this event led by the Coordination of Solidarity Associations with Western Sahara in Spain (CEAS-Sahara) headed by Mr PepeTaboada, the National Federation of Institutions of Solidarity with the Sahrawi People in Spain (FEDISA) headed by Mr CarmeloRamírez, and Federation of Madrid Associations of Friendship with the Sahrawi People (FEMAS) led by Mr Carlos de la Mota.
We would like to pay tribute to all members ofthe solidaritymovement andits symbols who have passed away leaving behind an indelible legacy of activism. We would also like to salute warmly the men and women from around the world who have joined the solidarity campaign from the outset and whocontinue the march by our side with unwavering determination and diligence. I shall take it that I have mentioned all of them by name, with much love, appreciation and respect, as I salute the President of the European Coordination, Mr Pierre Galland.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
More than forty years of struggle by the Sahrawi people were all tragedies and suffering due to the heinous crimes committed against them, starting from the barbaric Moroccan military invasion of 31 October 1975.
On 14 November 1975, forty years ago, in this beautiful city of Madrid, the Spanish authorities signed a criminal act whereby theyabandonedtheir legal responsibilities towards Western Sahara and its people, and divided the Territory between the new invaders. By this act, they have become accomplice in the Moroccan occupation and itsgenocidal and most horrendous physical extermination practices used against our people, evidenced by the mass graves discovered recently and thousands of Sahrawi victims and disappeared.
It is a double betrayal that successive Spanish governments have sought to ignore during the past forty years. It is an open wound anda heavy debt and responsibility that still lies with the Spanish State.
It is time to settle this debt and to remove the burden laid on the peoples of Spain by revoking the shameful Madrid Agreement and assuming the legal and moral duty to hold a referendum of self-determination of the Sahrawi people.
In November 2010, Moroccan troops dismantled by force the GdeimIzik.Direct victims of this brutal assault were thousands of Sahrawi women, men, children, elderly and people with special needs, who reject the occupation and the violation of their fundamental rights.
On this occasion, we call for the immediate release of the detainees of GdeimIzikand all the Sahrawi political prisoners held in Moroccan prisons, and the accounting for the fate of more than 650 Sahrawi disappeared by the Moroccan State. We also call for putting an end to the plunder of the Sahrawi natural resources and the removal of the crime against humanity represented by the Moroccan wall of occupation and separation.
The steadfastness shown by the Sahrawi people for more than forty years, with dignity and integrity, will not weaken an iota despite repression, intimidation and the threat of hordes of armies and police, in plainclothes or uniform, and the huge waves of settlers. All these repressive measures increased remarkably and dangerously during the provocative visit made by the King of Morocco to theSahrawi occupied territories last week.
The Sahrawi people do not need to hear the King’s empty promises of well-being and development, but they need freedom and dignity, and they challenge the Kingdom of Morocco to allow the holding of a referendum of self-determination which it agreedon under the peace plan of 1991.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
A few weeks ago, the Sahrawi refugee camps witnessed heavy rains that have caused massive damage to the people and their properties, and affected vital sectors such as education, health and administration.On this occasion, I would like to pay tribute to the high spirit of courage, cooperation and solidarity and high morale shown by the Sahrawi men and women. I would also like to single out Sahrawi women who have been at the forefront of the national endeavour in which all components and sectors of our society have participated. No wonder that the Sahrawis have behaved in this way because they are well aware that they are, above all, refugees of a just cause and a usurped right for which they are willing to face all difficulties.
Our thanks go to the allies and friends of the Sahrawi people around the world who have come to lend a helping hand to our people. I would like to pay special tribute to the sisterly Algeria, which took the lead once again and with honour, as it did in 1975, when it hosted Sahrawi refugees who were fleeing from the aircrafts of the Moroccan Royal Forces that were bombing them with napalm and white phosphorus.
The camps are still in dire need of more urgent aid. I would like to extend our thanks, greetings and appreciation to theneighbouring sisterly Mauritania and its government and people for their laudable initiative and tothe African Union, which was quick to respond to the situation and to the solidarity movement in Spain for its outstanding contributions, and to the solidarity movement at large as it gathers today for celebrating its fortieth session against the backdrop of a history full of noble deeds.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Genuine and lasting stability should be based on respect for law, democracy, human rights and the restoration of the usurped rights of the Sahrawi people. This is the avenue to ensure a just and lasting peace in the region that would pave the way for the achievement of the Maghreb Union on the basis of mutual respect, cooperation and good neighbourliness.
Stability cannot be achieved by ignoring the direct threat facing northwest Africa, a region that is close to Europe, which is caused by the policies pursued by the Kingdom of Morocco including expansionism, aggression, blackmail and inundating the region with drugs, which would lead to encouraging organised crime and terrorism.
Forty years ago, the International Court of Justice issued its opinion that denied the existence of any ties of sovereignty between the Kingdom of Morocco and Western Sahara. The arsenal of the United Nations resolutions calling for decolonisation and self-determination was also reinforced by the report of its visiting mission that confirmed the attachment of the Sahrawis, led by the Frente POLISARIO, to national independence and their rejection of anything else.
However, the United Nations efforts are still deadlocked because of Morocco’s increasing intransigence and the failure of the UN Security Council to assume its responsibilities as a result of the deliberate delaying tactics pursued by France in favour of Morocco. It is unfortunate that the country of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is bent on preventing the Sahrawis from exercising their right to vote, while opposing the establishment of a UN mechanism to protect their rights and resources in the occupied territories of their country.
The United Nations should assume its responsibilities by settling the last case of decolonisation in Africa. In the face of the intransigence of the Kingdom of Morocco and its continuous attempt to override the will of the Sahrawi people and its disregard for international conventions and resolutions, the international recognition of the Sahrawi Republic, the State of the Sahrawis, becomes a duty and a legal and moral responsibility of the international community.
This State, a founding member of the African Union, which will celebrate soon its fortieth anniversary, is a factor of moderation and stability in the region. It embodies a distinct experience in the region, as the Frente POLISARIOhas focused on building a modern and open society that believes in the ideals of democracy, equality, tolerance and coexistence between cultures. It is an experience that is worthy of support and protection of the international community at a time when extremism and terrorism represent a growing danger in the world.
This is the message of the Sahrawi people to the world; the Sahrawi cause is just, clear-cut and simple;it is a question of decolonisation and self-determination;sovereignty can be decided on only by its owner, the Sahrawi people. With strong determination and with supporters of justice, law and legality and friends of freedom and peace like you here and across the world, the Sahrawi people are resolved to continue their struggle in line with the UN Charter and resolutions, with full faith in the inevitable victory with which all liberation struggles throughout history were crowned.
I wish the Conference every success. The Independent Sahrawi State is the Solution! (SPS)
Thank you!
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