London, Feb 4, 2018 (SPS) -The Western Sahara Research Watch (WSRW) said it “was deeply shocked by the rogue behaviour of the European Commission,” which negotiate with Rabat a new trade agreement that includes SADR’s products.
“The European Commission shows blatant disregard for the judgment the Court of Justice and for obstructing the UN peace efforts in Western Sahara” as it continues negotiations with Morocco a new agreement that includes the resources of occupied Sahrawi territories,” affirmed WSRW Representative Morten Nielson.
“Europe should be guided by the rule of law and moral rectitude, not cynicism and recklessness," stated Morten quoted in a communiqué released by WSRW this week.
“Reportedly, the Commission had stressed it was committed to comply with the judgment and was keen to consult various stakeholders, including Saharawi civil society and even the Front Polisario. That appears now to have been misleading and behind the scenes, the Commission was finalizing the deal,” affirmed Nielson.
“This is an insult to the European Parliament and to the Court of Justice (EPCJ) ,” stressed Nielsen.
Besides, said that “from the very inception of the negotiations with Morocco, the Commission’s approach to the decision of the EU Court has fallen short of basic EU standards of accountable and transparent trade negotiations.”
“The Commission has seemingly not consulted anyone, irrespective of them being the Polisario Front and the Sahrawi civil society. No steps appear to have been taken by the EU Commission, nor the EEAS, to obtain the consent of the representation of the Western Sahara people and the Polisario Front,” stated Nielsen.
“Other countries have legal trade agreements with Morocco that explicitly do not apply to Western Sahara. The EU, under French pressure, is reluctant to follow that route,” said the WSRW representative. (SPS)
The organisation recommended to all companies established in the EU “to measure the considerable legal, moral and financial risks related to doing business with occupied Western Sahara and to require from the EU institutions effective guarantees against such risks.” (SPS)
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