 The autonomy plan presented by Morocco as the only solution to the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara was widely and strongly supported during the regional seminar of the UN Committee of 24 (C24) for the Pacific, held from May 11 to 13 in Castries, Saint Lucia.
This event was also marked by the participation for the 5th consecutive year of Ms. Ghalla Bahiya, Vice-President of the Dakhla Oued Eddahab region and Mr. M'hamed Abba, Vice-President of the Laayoune-Sakia Al Hamra region, at the invitation of the President of the C24.
The presence of these elected representatives of the Moroccan Sahara was highly welcomed by a large number of delegations, thus consecrating their legitimacy as democratically elected representatives of the population of the Moroccan Sahara, resulting from elections unanimously described as democratic, free and transparent by all national and international observers.
The participation of the two elected representatives of the Moroccan Sahara in the seminar of the Committee of 24, undeniably and irrevocably consecrates the UN and international recognition of their status as legitimate representatives of the populations of the southern provinces of the Kingdom. The participation of the elected representatives of the Moroccan Sahara once again undermines the alleged and chimerical representativeness of the separatist group linked to terrorism, Polisario.
Moreover, the virulent and multiple exchanges between the Moroccan ambassador to the UN, Omar Hilale, and the Algerian ambassador, Nadir El Arabaoui, have confirmed, once again, the bilateral nature of the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara.
Mr. Hilale demonstrated, with evidence, the direct involvement of Algeria in the creation and maintenance of this dispute and its status as the main party in the Sahara issue. He also condemned the false allegations of the Algerian ambassador on the situation in the Moroccan Sahara. Not without confronting him with the sad realities of massive human rights violations in Algeria.
During the seminar, several countries representing different regions of the world expressed their strong support for the territorial integrity of Morocco and its autonomy plan as the only solution to the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara, while recalling that this plan has been described as serious and credible by the UN Security Council in all its resolutions since 2007.
Referring to the political process underway under the exclusive auspices of the UN Secretary General, the various speakers welcomed the holding of the two round tables in Geneva between Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and Polisario, in accordance with the resolutions of the Security Council, in particular 2602.
In this regard, they welcomed the efforts of the UN SG and his Personal Envoy for the Moroccan Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, calling on the latter to capitalize on the progress made by his predecessor in the roundtable process with the four participants, and with its same modalities, in accordance with the spirit and the letter of the Security Council resolution 2602 adopted in October 2021 even the few intransigent Algerians present at the seminar, most of whom are not members of the C24, supported the UN political process, to the chagrin of the Algerian ambassador.
In this sense, the representatives of Member States have stressed the need to be inspired by the recommendations of the Security Council contained in particular in resolution 2602, which calls on all parties, especially Algeria, to engage in good faith in the political process, under the auspices of the UN Secretary General, on the basis of Security Council resolutions since 2007, in order to achieve "a political solution, realistic, pragmatic, sustainable and compromise" to this regional dispute.
The resolutions adopted since 2007, they stressed, have all highlighted the pre-eminence of the Moroccan autonomy plan in the Sahara, saying that this plan has the merit of transcending traditional positions and meets international standards in terms of delegation of authority to local populations.
The various representatives of participating countries welcomed the opening by several countries of consulates general in Laayoune and Dakhla, in the Moroccan Sahara, considering that this is "an undeniable impetus to support the political process underway" and the sovereignty of the Kingdom over its Sahara.
Regarding the socio-economic dynamics in the southern provinces, several ambassadors and diplomats were keen to welcome, on the occasion of this seminar, the new development model for the southern provinces of the Kingdom launched in 2015, welcoming the fact that this initiative has empowered the people of the Sahara region and raise the human development indices.
The delegations also welcomed the "major achievements" of Morocco in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic in the Moroccan Sahara, stressing that the ongoing vaccination campaign has allowed wide access to the anti-COVID vaccine for the population of this region of the Kingdom.
They took the opportunity offered by the C24 regional seminar for the Caribbean to express their appreciation to Morocco for its various initiatives taken in the direction of the socio-economic development of the Sahara, in particular the large-scale projects and other infrastructure that are being implemented as part of the new development model for the southern provinces, launched by HM King Mohammed VI, as well as the efforts made in terms of human rights, welcomed by the Security Council in its resolutions.
On a broader geostrategic level, the representatives of countries participating in this regional seminar said that autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty ensures stability and regional security, considering it an issue of utmost importance for the entire Sahel-Saharan region. And to emphasize, in this regard, that the final resolution of the Sahara issue will contribute to strengthening cooperation between Member States of the Arab Maghreb Union, stability and security of the Sahel region, not to mention its positive impact on socio-economic development in this area and the welfare of its people.
The various speakers at this seminar have also reiterated the call for the registration by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) of the population of the Tindouf camps in Algerian territory, as requested by the Security Council in all its resolutions since 2011. They also spoke out against the violations of human rights of the population of these camps.
Several delegations welcomed Morocco's respect for the ceasefire and urged the Polisario to return to it.
This new success of Morocco on the UN scene is a testimony to the growing international support for Morocco's legitimate rights over its Sahara, for the Kingdom's efforts to definitively resolve this regional dispute and for the striking achievements for the socio-economic development of the southern provinces.
The C24 seminar in St. Lucia confirmed, if it were still necessary, the fallacy of the false separatist theses of Algeria and its puppet Polisario, to which the international community, including the C24 in charge of decolonization at the UN, does not give the slightest credit, nor attention and whose place is the dustbin of history.
-News on Western Sahara/Corcas
|