Ljubljana (Slovenia), Oct 7, 2011 (SPS) - A Group of Slovenian organizations signed Monday a resolution calling on the Slovenian government to be firmer in defending right of Western Sahara people to self-determination, standing with the Saharawi people and condemning the human rights abuses committed by Morocco, informed Office of the Polisario Front to the Balkan Countries.
“Western Sahara is the last example in the world of a process of decolonisation having remained incomplete, one where the neighbouring country is enjoying the benefits of illegal occupation of a foreign territory, rejecting Security Council resolutions, repeatedly ignoring UN demands for a referendum and the right to self-determination for the people of Western Sahara and infringing human rights and standards of international law,” stated the resolution.
“The problem of Western Sahara is a political problem, a problem of decolonisation. It can be solved in only one way, in the same way that similar problems were solved elsewhere, that is on the basis of international law, self-determination of nations and agreements,” it added, expressing the need to strengthen the role of the United Nations in Western Sahara.
The Organizations called on Slovenia and the European Union to play a more active role and use every means to demand that the Kingdom of Morocco ceases its hostile attitude towards the Saharawi people and stops harassing parliamentarians, the media and human rights defenders, adding that they have a major historical responsibility, particularly certain countries such as Spain and France.
They also called on the Slovenian government to denounce the arbitrary persecution and repression of innocent people in the occupied Western Sahara, pressure the Kingdom of Morocco to liberate all the Saharawi human rights activists and political prisoners, increase the humanitarian aid to Saharawi refugees in Algeria who have lived for 36 years in precarious conditions and depending on external aid.
The resolution appealed to the Slovenian government to call furthermore for the inclusion of monitoring of the human rights situation in the mandate of MINURSO and to send a delegation to Western Sahara in order to observe the human rights situation.
“Occupation of Western Sahara by the military, police and Moroccan settlers is an illegal occupation of a ‘non-self-governing territory’ as defined by international law. Morocco has no sovereignty over the Western Sahara; We repeat, none,” they underlined.
“This is also the time to expose the real humanitarian tragedy that is being forced upon the Saharawi people, who are obliged to live far from their homeland in refugee camps, and to call for the urgent strengthening of international humanitarian aid,” the Slovenian organizations emphasized, confirming “all the abuses and repression that are being perpetrated in the Western Sahara by the Moroccan Government only have one aim: ensuring that they cannot exercise their right to self-determination.”
It urged Slovenia to demand that the Kingdom of Morocco respect international law regarding the destruction of the natural resources of Western Sahara, especially regarding the EU- Morocco Fisheries Agreement, as to permit free access and movement in Western Sahara to independent observers, parliamentarians, press and to humanitarian organizations.
It therefore stressed on the necessity for Slovenia to demand that the European Commission follow-up on the state of human rights in Western Sahara and regularly sends information missions to the area.
The organizations signed on the resolution are: the Institute for African Studies, Women's Lobby of Slovenia, Institute for Social Creativity, Greens of Slovenia, LU Institution, Institute for Social Transfusion, Creative and Applied Sciences, Sociology students Association, Political Science students Association, Slovenian Institute for Psihoterapy, Slovene – Tibet Support Group, Slovenian Association for the fight against Racism, Institute for Researching and Developing Interactions, Center for Promotion of Self, Women's Counselling Association, Youth's Party – Greens of Europe, Stability Pact for Gender Equality, Paracelsus Association, Goga - the Photographic Association and Bickova skala – the Scout's Associatio. (SPS)
090/089/TRA