Bir Lehlou (liberated territories), Jan 9, 2013 (SPS) - The President of the Republic, Secretary General of the Polisario Front Mr. Mohamed Abdelaziz confirmed, in a letter sent to UN Chief, that the ongoing exploitation of Saharawi natural resources by Morocco and complicit foreign entities "run the risk of undermining a new phase in the efforts by the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General Mr. Christopher Ross to find a just solution that will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.”
Following is the the omplete text of the letter sent Tuesday by Mr. Mohamed Abdelaziz, Preident of the Republic and Secretary General of the Frente Polisario, to Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the United Nations Organization:
“The Honorable Mr. Ban Ki-Moon
Secretary-General
United Nations
760 United Nations Plaza
New York, NY 10017
07 January 2014
Your Excellency,
On behalf of the Frente POLISARIO and the Saharawi people of Western Sahara, I am writing to draw your attention to the recent developments regarding the intention of certain foreign governments and companies to engage in the illegal exploration and exploitation of the natural resources of Western Sahara.
It has come to the attention of the Frente POLISARIO that the US-based company, Kosmos Energy LLC, in cooperation with Morocco’s state-owned Office National des Hydrocarbures et des Mines (ONHYM) and the UK-based Cairn Energy, is accelerating plans for further seismic surveys and the drilling of exploration and appraisal wells in the waters and seabed areas offshore Western Sahara.
These activities violate the permanent sovereignty of the Saharawi people over their own natural resources, and run the risk of undermining a new phase in the efforts by the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General Mr Christopher Ross to find a just solution that will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western.
As is widely recognized, Western Sahara is not part of Morocco. It is a Non-Self-Governing Territory under the UN Charter, awaiting a process of decolonisation. The International Court of Justice confirmed in 1975 that there are no sovereign ties between Morocco and Western Sahara. No country has ever recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over any part of Western Sahara.
As an occupying power in Western Sahara, Morocco is not competent to enter into agreements with respect to Western Sahara’s natural resources, and any such agreements are without legal effect. Ongoing exploitation of the resources by Morocco and complicit foreign entities is in breach of the Saharawi people’s permanent sovereignty over their natural resources, and the sacred trust owed under Article 73 of the UN Charter to ensure that the interests of the inhabitants of a Non-Self-Governing Territory are paramount.
In a legal opinion provided in 2002 by then Under-Secretary-General and Legal Adviser to the UN Secretary-General Hans Corell to the UN Security Council, in response to its request for an opinion on the legality of Moroccan efforts to enter into contracts with foreign entities for the exploration of the mineral resources in Western Sahara, Corell concluded that:
“…if further exploration and exploitation activities were to proceed in disregard of the interests and wishes of the people of Western Sahara, they would be in violation of the principles of international law applicable to mineral resource activities in Non-Self Governing Territories.” (UN Doc.S/2006/161)
Corell has subsequently explained that this means that there is an international obligation to consult with and seek the consent of the people of Western Sahara, or their internationally recognized representatives, the Frente POLISARIO, prior to pursuing activities relating to Western Sahara’s natural resources [New Routes, Vol.15 (4/2010)].
Despite repeated correspondence with the companies concerned to protest their ongoing and proposed activities, in the strongest possible terms, to highlight their illegality and seek their immediate halt, neither company has sought to contact, inform or seek authorization for their activities either from the Frente POLISARIO or the Saharawi people.
As we have expressed to you in an earlier letter in March 2013, other companies such as Groupe Total SA have recently engaged in similar illegal activities, having conducted an intensive seabed seismic survey off the coast of Western Sahara in the past 12 months. This was carried out without any consultation of the Saharawi people of their political representatives, despite repeated objections made by the Frente POLISARIO requesting Groupe Total SA to terminate its presence in the waters off Western Sahara immediately.
Without seeking the consent of the people of Western Sahara and ensuring that the planned activities will directly benefit the people in the Territory, all of these companies have failed to satisfy the basic requirements of international law on the exploitation of the natural resources of a Non-Self-Governing Territory.
Given the clarity of the applicable law on this matter, we also wish to record our deep dismay at recent efforts by the European Union to resume an illegal fisheries agreement with the Kingdom of Morocco which purports to grant licenses for the exploitation of the fish resources in the waters off the coast of Western Sahara.
According to its terms, the proposed new protocol under the EU-Morocco Fisheries Partnership Agreement would provide EU vessels with fishing opportunities in “the waters falling within the sovereignty or jurisdiction of Morocco.” However, in the absence of any sovereign ties between Morocco and Western Sahara, and despite the fact that Morocco’s fishing zone cannot legally include the waters off Western Sahara, the FPA is silent on the southern extremity of its area of application. The European Commission has nevertheless confirmed that it intends to grant licenses to EU-flagged waters to fish Western Sahara’s waters.
In light of the detrimental impact that this could have on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 2099 (2013) the Frente POLISARIO urgently requests the Secretary-General to condemn these activities, which are in clear violation of international law, and ask all parties to stop the illegal exploitation of the natural resources of Western Sahara.
The Frente POLISARIO, as the internationally recognized representative of the Saharawi people, reserves the right to use all available means, including legal avenues, to prevent and seek reparation in respect of any unauthorized activities relating to the natural resources of Western Sahara.
We believe that it is the responsibility of the Members of the United Nations to fulfil their obligations under Chapter XI of the UN Charter, and for the UN to therefore take any necessary measures to stop the illegal plunder of the natural resources belonging to the people of Western Sahara.
If these measures are not taken, then the illegal exploration and exploitation of the Territory’s resources will further undermine the UN’s long-standing efforts to reach a peaceful solution that will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara, as required by numerous UN Security Council resolutions.
I would be most grateful if you could also bring this letter to the attention of the Members of the Security Council.
Please accept, your Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.
Mohamed Abdelaziz
Secretary-General of the Frente POLISARIO.” (SPS)
090/089