Rome (Italy) 08 October 2024 (SPS) – Stefano Vaccari, a member of Italy's Democratic Party (Pd) and President of the Intergroup of Friendship with the Saharawi People, called Today afternoon on the Italian government and parliament to take immediate actions in support of the Sahrawi people following a pivotal European Court of Justice ruling issued last Friday 04 October.
"The Saharawi people must be enabled to return to their land, which has been illegally occupied by the Moroccan regime since 1976. Now there is a real opportunity for this to happen," Vaccari stated during a speech in the Chamber of Deputies Today.
The European Court of Justice recently issued a definitive ruling, confirming that the fishing and agriculture agreements signed in 2019 between the European Union and Morocco are invalid without the consent of the Saharawi people, as Morocco holds no sovereignty over Western Sahara, Vaccari explained.
He added that for decades, the Saharawi people have lived in exile, primarily in the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria, while enduring severe repression in their occupied homeland, according to reports from Amnesty International.
Vaccari stressed that, in light of this ruling, further inaction by the European Union is unacceptable. He urged Italy to play its part in supporting the Saharawi's right to self-determination, a stance echoed by the United Nations.
"We call on the President of the Chamber to schedule a discussion, either in the full Assembly or in committee, in the presence of Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, on the motion presented by the Intergroup more than 18 months ago. We hope it can be debated soon to establish a unified position for our country in support of the rights of the Saharawi people, which are currently being denied," Vaccari concluded.
It is worth noted that the President of the Italian Intergroup of Solidarity with the Sahrawi people had already reacted to the ruling of the EU Court, last Friday, and called for an immediate diplomatic action from the European governments following the landmark ruling.
The court declared the trade agreements between the European Union and Morocco involving Western Sahara as illegal, a decision Vaccari hailed as a historic moment for the Saharawi people's right to self-determination.
The Court also concluded that Morocco has no sovereignty over the occupied territory and therefore cannot sign agreement on behalf of its people, stressing on the other hand that the legitimate representative of the Sahrawi people is Polisario Front. (SPS)
090/500/60 (SPS)