African
conference for solidarity with the struggle of the people of Western Sahara, 28th-30th
October, 2013, Abuja – Nigeria.
Lead
Paper:
LIBERATING
THE WESTERN SAHARA:
ENDING
COLONIALISM IN AFRICA
by
YOMIAKINYEYE(Ph.D)
Professor,
Department of History and Strategic Studies &
Dean,
Faculty of Arts, University of Lagos, Lagos
Between
1884 and 1914, most of Africa was divided among the various European
countries. By 1975, with the
independence of Portuguese colonies, colonized African states had regained
their freedom. Apart from direct
external colonialism, certain African states in the southern region of the
country were subjected to dehumanizing internal subjugation by racist
supremacist regimes. However, thanks to
the determination of the indigenes of such countries and robust support by
other countries on the African continent and the international community at
large, such countries also became liberated in 1981 in the case of Zimbabwe,
and 1994with the institution of multi-party democracy in apartheid South
Africa. Even the other African country
that was abused by her neighbor under the guise of the League of Nations’
mandate and the United Nations’ Trusteeship (Namibia) also gained its
independence in 1991 largely through the same process of determined internal
resistance and dogged international assistance.
However, the story of the Western Sahara is the only exception to this
rhythm in African history. Like most
African countries with the clear exception of Ethiopia and arguable case of
Liberia, the country was colonized by Spain in 1884 and rather than gain her
independence like her sister African countries when Spain left in 1975, she
passed to another phase of colonial domination by her neighbours namely: Mauritania
to the South and Morocco to the North.
Like the Southern African countries of Angola, Mozambique, Zimbabwe,
Republic of SouthAfrica and Namibia, the people of the Western Sahara under the
name of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic have been fighting, but to date,
unlike the other instances mentioned above, independence remains a pious hope
while subjugation is the living reality of the people of Western Sahara. Why has history been unfair to the SADR and
what can be done to rid Africa of this last vestige of colonialism? This paper seeks to discuss the Saharawi
efforts to liberate the Western Sahara, highlighting the nexus between history
and international law in the process and pointing out the lapses in the
liberation efforts. It will finally
conclude by making some suggestions about how to solve the Saharawi question
and ensure the final and total liberation of Africa. For analytical convenience, it will be useful
to physically locate the area called the Western Sahara geographically and
known to international relations as the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic
(SADR).
WESTERN SAHARA
Western
Sahara is geographically located in the North-western part of Africa. It is
bordered by Morocco to the North, Mauritania to the East, Algeria to the
Northeast and the Atlantic Ocean to the West.1 The land is largely
unhabitable consisting of desert. It is
however, richly endowed with phosphates in BouCraa. The climate is hot, desert and rain is
rare. The terrain is mostly low, flat
desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small
mountains. Plants and animal life is
restricted to those species adapted to desert conditions, such as fennec foxes,
jerboas and other rodents. Reptiles
include lizards and snakes. The country occupies a total landmass of two
hundred and sixty six thousand square kilometres. Due to the current political
situation and the on-going Moroccan occupation of large parts of Western
Sahara, it is hard to know the exact number of the inhabitants of the
territory. It is estimated however that the population of Western Sahara is
about half a million inhabitants. The people of the territory are of Arabic,
African and Berber origins. They speak a dialect of Arabic called Hassaniya.
HISTORY
Historically,
Western Sahara has a history dating back to about the 5th century
B.C. when it consisted of a number of nomadic groups living under Berber rule
and were in contact with the Roman Empire.5 In the 13th Century, Europeans
started visiting the Western Sahara with the intention of trading. In the 14th Century, the discovery
of the rich fishing grounds between the Canary Island and the Sahara Coast
further attracted more foreign visitors
to the Western Sahara.6Spanish imperialism in the Western Sahara
started in the 15th Century first with the conquest of the Canary
Island and then a series of treaty with Portugal recognizing Spanish Right of
Influence. In 1476, Santa Cruz de mar Pequena
fort which remained Spanish base for trade and expansion in the Sahara was
established. This formed the basis for
Spain to prevent other foreign countries making their presence felt in the
Saharan Coast between the 16th and 18th Centuries.
North
of the Western Sahara, Morocco was also developing as a nation state through
the conquest and integration of a number of some Berber groups in the 16th
and 17th centuries. She was
beginning to contest some parts of the neighbouring Western Sahara with Spain
and Portugal. By the end of the 18th
century, the outline of the Moroccan state had taken shape. By a treaty of 1767 signed in Marrakech,
Morocco recognized the river nun as the limit of its authority.7 In 1799, the Moroccan monarch Sultan
MuleySoliman acknowledged that he did exercise sovereignty over the territories
bordering the river which is still several kilometres from the Western
Sahara. Other international agreements
entered into by Morocco in 1856 and 1861 with Britain and Spain respectively
were unequivocal about the exclusion of the territories of the Western Sahara
from the dimension of Morocco.8
However, for purely national interest, Britain in 1885 concluded a
treaty with Morocco which implied that Morocco had sovereignty over a stretch
of territory between River Draa and the Western Sahara. Spain then intensified her colonial expansion
in the Western Sahara and succeeded in getting herself recognized at the Berlin
Conference in 1885 as the colonial master of Western Sahara. Spain thereafter negotiated the boundaries of
what today is the Western Sahara with France in 1900, 1904 and 1912. Spain remained the colonial overlord of the
Western Sahara from the time of the Berlin Conference (1884-1885) until 1975.
Meanwhile,
the Saharawi people did not reconcile themselves to Spanish colonialism. Apart from the natural love of people for
freedom, Spanish colonialism did little to endear Spain to the colonized. Only very basic minimum needs of the people
were provided by the Spanish colonialist.
Also, Spain took pains not to offend the religious sensibilities of the
people and there was little or no intermarriage between the Spanish
colonialists and the native Saharawi. At
the same time, there was the massive exploitation of the resources of the
people by Spain. The rich fishing and
later phosphates resources of the Western Sahara came in handy for Spain. The Saharawi people therefore resorted to
armed struggle and made Spanish rule fragile.
Notable figures emerged among the Saharawi to organise resistance
against foreign rule. The Saharawi themselves
got a sense of common identity partly as a result of the foreign domination
they experienced with its attendant exploitation. One of the early leaders of
Saharawi liberation struggle was Ma’elAineen who coordinated Saharawi
resistance to the French as they made incursions from the North, South and East
of the Western Sahara from the 1880s.9 When Spain began to move into the interior of
the Western Sahara, she was allowed on the condition that she would not disarm
the Saharawis.10Saharawi resistance to foreign rule and presence
intensified in the 1940s and 1950s as a result of the exploitation of the
resources of the people.Saharawi resistance was also encouraged by the outbreak
of liberation struggles in many parts of the world. There was a liberation struggle in
neighbouring Algeria. The widespread
phenomenon of liberation struggle helped in gaining international recognition
for the Saharawi. Western Sahara was
discussed as a separate entity in the United Nations.
This
was the situation until 1975, when a combination of factors among which was the
intensity of the liberation struggle and Spanish domestic politics led to
Spanish withdrawal from the Western Sahara. However, unlike in most cases of
decolonization, Spain did not hand over power to the indigenous people but went
into an agreement with both Mauritania and Morocco to occupy the Western
Sahara. This was the notorious Madrid
agreement of November 14, 1975.11
It
can be noted in passing that just like the Berlin African Congress of 1884/85
when the European countries divided nearly the whole of Africa among themselves
without any reference to the Africans, the Madrid agreement of 1975 among
Spain, Mauritania and Morocco did not refer to the indigenes of the Western
Sahara. However, Spain had forgotten
that the world of 1975 was different from that of 1884/1885. There were two important differences in
global geopolitics of 1884/85 and 1975.
In 1884/85, there was no multilateral organization such as the United
Nations which obliged nations of the world to observe certain rules they had
mutual agreed to. The second very
important difference was the existence of rules of international law to which
member nations are signatory. These
differences placed some difficulties in the ways of all the parties concerned
in the Western Sahara saga. By 1975, not
only had the United Nations with its Charter being in existence for thirty
years, the canon of international laws in governing therelations of nations
with themselves and the world had become clear.
On the African continent, the Organisation of African Unity with its ownCharter
which governed relations among African nations to the extent that such Charter did
not conflict with international law in general had also been in existence. Provisions of the Charter of the U.N.O. and
O.A.U. as will be shown presently called to question, the actions of Spain,
Mauritania and Morocco on the Western Sahara question. What then are the provisions of these two
bodies namely the U.N.O. and O.A.U. which militated against the Spanish, Mauritanian
and Moroccan action and how did the bodies react to the situation?
THE WESTERN SAHARA AND INTERNATIONAL LAW
I
should make it clear from the beginning that I am not a lawyer and I do not by
any means pretend to be one. However, as a student of diplomatic history, we
are exposed to the dictates of international law as explained by students of
international law for analysis. It is on
this platform that I make my views known on the Western Sahara issue in the
light of international law. Spain, the
colonial master of Western Sahara became a member of the U.N. in 1955. To that extent, she agreed to be bound by
provisions of the Charter of the world body.
Upon becoming a member of the U.N.O., Spain had attempted to define Western
Sahara as its province rather than as a colony which the territory was. A province just like a state in the Nigerian
context is an integral part of a country.
However, a colony is recognized as distinct from, though subjugated by
another country. Spain failed in its bid to get Western Sahara recognized as a
province as the territory was classified as a Non-Self-Governing territory
under the hegemony of Spain. Apart from Spain, Portugal had also attempted to
define some of her overseas colonies in Africa as provinces rather than
colonies. The Portuguese and Spanish attempts were instrumental to the United
Nations General Assembly’s adoption of resolution 1541 (XV) of 1960. This resolution stated that Article 73 of the
United Nations’ Charter dealing with the issue of Non-Self-Governing
territories should be applicable to Western Sahara.12
The
resolution states that “prima facie there is an obligation to transmit
information in respect of a territory which is geographically separate and is
distinct ethically and or culturally from the country administering it”.13Resolution
1541 (XV) was then followed by Resolution 1514 (XV). This resolution states, inter alia, that:
“Immediate steps shall be taken in trust and Non-Self-Governing Territories or
all other territories which have not yet attained independence, to transfer all
powers to the peoples of those territories, without any conditions or
reservations, in accordance with their freely expressed will and desire without
any distinction as to race, creed or colour in order to enable them to enjoy
complete independence and freedom”.14
In
the light of these two resolutions, Spain as a member of the U.N. was obliged
to transmit information about Western Sahara as a Non-Self-Governing territory
since she had recognized the territory as such.
She also had the duty to comply with resolution 1514 (XV). Spain failed in these two obligations. Rather than fulfil her obligations as stated
above, Spain entered into the November 14, 1975 agreement with both Mauritania
and Morocco thereby breaching another principle of international law. This is the international law principle of Jus
Cogens. This was a principle
introduced into international law in the 1969 Vienna Convention on the law of
treaties.15 Article 53 of the
Convention states that:
“A
treaty is void if at the time of its conclusion it conflicts with a peremptory
norm of general international law”. A
peremptory norm of general is a norm accepted and recognized by the
international community of states as a whole as a norm from which no derogation
is permitted and which can be modified only by a subsequent norm of
international law having the same character.16
It
must be pointed out that like other provisions of international law, this
principle is binding only on members of the international community that have
ratified it. Not all members of the
international community of states have ratified this principle. However, both Spain and Morocco are among the
membersof the international community that have ratified the principle of Jus
Cogens.17 The implication
of this is that since both Morocco and Spain recognised both resolutions
1514(XV) and 1541(XV), the Madrid agreement of 14th November, 1975
was a nullity ab initio, void and also of no effect under international
law. It has already been pointed out
that even when Morocco was making incursion into areas close to the Western
Sahara in the 16th and 17th Century, she admitted that
her authority did not extend to the areas that today constitute Western Sahara. Spanish agreement that resolution 1514 of
1960 applies to Western Sahara implies that Spain recognized that the territory
was and still is geographically ethnically and culturally different from Spain.
Going ahead to alienate the territory without reference to the people of
Western Sahara is a breach of this norm of international law. Morocco was and still, is a member of the
U.N. which also acknowledged resolution 1514 (XV) which she has ratified. Morocco also has breached her treaty
obligation. In addition, Morocco was a
founding member of the Organisation of African Unity. In 1964, the Organisation resolved that
inherited colonial boundaries, though imperfect, will be accepted as they were
at the time of independence. Morocco was
a signatory to this agreement. As at the
time of her independence in 1956, the international boundaries of Morocco
clearly excluded the areas of modern day Western Sahara. Proceeding to enter into an agreement
purporting to alienate the Western Sahara is a breach of this collective
agreement of the O.A.U. Even though
Morocco has since left the O.A.U. and succeeding A.U.; she remains a member of
the U.N. Hence, the breach of Jus
Cogenson the part of Morocco continues.
In
acceding to the Madrid treaty of 1975, Morocco wrongly based her claim on
pre-colonial affiliations with the Western Sahara. This claim was robustly and rightly refuted
by the POLISARIO Front. This elicited an
International Court of Justice’s opinion in 1975. In the ruling, the ICJ in 1975 held that “The
materials and information presented to it do not establish any tie of
territorial sovereignty between the territory of Western Sahara and the Kingdom
of Morocco or the Mauritanian entity. Thus the Court has not found legal ties
of such a nature as might affect the application of General Assembly resolution
1514 (XV) in the decolonization of Western Sahara and, in particular, of the
principle of self-determination through the free and genuine expression of the
will of the peoples of the Territory”.18
This
leads us to another legal issue in the Western Sahara. The right to self-determination.Although Morocco,
Spain and Mauritania recognized resolution 1514 (XV), they went ahead to
conclude the Madrid agreement of 14thNovember, 1975. Since joining the U.N., Spain recognized the
Western Sahara to be aNon-Self-Governing territory, which meant that she was
under the obligation not to do anything to prevent the exercise of
self-determination by the people of the Western Sahara. The Madrid agreement among Spain, Mauritania
and Morocco, apart from being void on the ground of the principle of peremptory
norm, also violates the obligation of Spain and all parties to the agreement
not to do anything to hinder the exercise of self-determination by the people
of the Western Sahara. Hence, on the
basis of international law and historical antecedents, the people of Western
Sahara can argue that Spain, Mauritania and Morocco’s agreement has infringed
on the right conferred on them be resolution 1514 (XV) and can invoke the law
any time to nullify the basis of Moroccan occupation. This was what the Baltic nations did against
the defunct Soviet Union fifty years after the Soviet acquired their territory
under a similar agreement.19
Also,
the Moroccan continued occupation of the Western Sahara violates the peremptory
norm of non-aggression in international law.
The United Nations’ General Assembly in its resolution 3314 of 1974,
defines aggression as “the invasion or attack by armed forces of a state of the
territory of another state, or any military occupation, however temporary
resulting from such invasion or attack, or any annexation by the use of force
of the territory of another state thereof”.20 This definition squarely describes what
Morocco has done in relation to Western Sahara.
It is surprising that the United Nations has not gone all out to condemn
this act of Morocco for what it is. The
Western Sahara with its name Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic is a state
recognized by the African Union that still suffers the occupation by another
state. The continued acquiescence of the
international community in itself also constitutes a breach of their obligation
to oppose Morocco in its act of aggression against the SADR. The ICJ has clearly determined the invalidity
of the title to an alien land by
external occupying states and the obligation of other states not to recognize
that title as valid. This was in the
case of Palestine versus Israel in the occupied territory where the ICJ ruled
that Israeli occupation is a violation of Palestinian right to exercise self-determination
over the occupied territory.21
Other states that continue to deal with Morocco on the basis of her
occupation of the Western Sahara have made themselves accessory to the crime of
aggression and are thereby vicariously guilty of the same offence. This is particularly the case with such
countries that conclude fishing and phosphates agreements with Morocco to
exploit the rich resources of the SADR rather than concluding the agreement
with the SADR itself. The cooperation of
other countries either by directly concluding agreements with Morocco relating
to the Western Sahara or indirectly not condemning the occupation has gone a
long way in prolonging the Western Saharan question. What then had been the reaction of the
international community to the Western Saharan crisis?
INVOLVEMENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
The
international community has not reacted in the same way to the Western Sahara
crisis. Both bilaterally and multilaterally,
the Western Sahara crisis has elicited equivocal reactions. On one hand, the international community has
at multilateral fora such as the United Nations and the Organisation of African
Unity now turned African Union not supported the Moroccan occupation. On the other hand, they have not gone the
full length of condemning the Moroccan breach of international law and
obligations the way that they should and this had been a major reason for the
continuation of Moroccan action. At
bilateral levels, while a vast majority of the states in the international
community are not in support of the Moroccan action, Morocco is not without her
friends over the issue of the Western Sahara.
We shall look at the involvement of the international community through
multilateral fora first.
The
United Nations through several actions has shown its disapproval of the
Moroccan action. In admitting Spain to
membership, the UNO obliged the country to disclose its Non-Self-Governing territories
that should ultimately be entitled to self-determination. Spain initially resisted this move but
ultimately gave in. It was largely due
to the UN action that the Western Sahara was included in the list of Non-Self-Governing
territories in 1963 and Spain was recognized as its administering power in
1965.22 This act of the
United Nations made WesternSahara entitled to the benefits of General
Assembly’s resolutions 1514 (XV) and 1541 (XV) of 1960. Similarly, it was through the United Nations
action that the POLISARIOliberation movement was recognized as the sole and
legitimate representative of the people of Western Sahara. When Spain announced her intention to
decolonize the Western Sahara and Morocco objected on the ground that the
territory had been its integral part before Spanish colonization, it was the
General Assembly of the UN that organized a visiting mission to the Western
Sahara. This visiting mission refuted
the Moroccan claim and formed the basis of the ICJ opinion of 1975. This opinion made it inevitable that a
referendum which up till date hasnot been held was mandated to determine the
fate of Western Sahara.23
Similarly,
the Organisation of African Unity while it existed also was deeply involved in
the Western Sahara issue. As a matter of
fact, the fate of Western Sahara at a stage threatened the corporate existence
of the OAU as it divided member states and prevented the holding of both
ministerial and summit meetings of the OAU for three consecutive years in the
early 70s and early 80s. The 26th
meeting of the OAU ministerial council which was held between 26th
February and 3rd March 1973, could not reach a decision because of
Mauritanian and Moroccan objections to the recognition of the SADR.24 The 13th OAU Summit at Port Louis
in Mauritius in 1976, called for an extraordinary summit of the OAU to discuss
the Western Sahara issue. This did not
take place because of the division among OAU members. From 1973 when the POLISARIO movement made
its debut, OAU remained divided until 1984 when Morocco withdrew in protest
from the continental body because of the recognition of the SADR and its
invitation to participate in the summit.
In
1978, the OAU decided to set up an ad hoc committee of five heads of state to
find a solution to the Western Sahara problem in a way compatible with self-determination
for the people of the SADR. The
committee which consisted of Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Nigeria, Sudan,
established a sub-committee which consisted of Nigeria and Mali. Tanzania had been a member of the committee
but withdrew after recognizing the SADR.
The sub-committee recommended that a propitious atmosphere for the
establishment and maintenance of peace in the region, the observance of a
general ceasefire and the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara by
means of general fora OAU supervised referendum.25
This
recommendation was adopted in 1979. At
the same time, Mauritania withdrew from Western Sahara and Morocco simply moved
in to occupy the territory vacated by Mauritania. Since then, the Western Sahara question
continued to threaten the existence of the OAU.
Its recommendation for the holding of a referendum in 1991, was adopted
by the UNO but frustrated by Morocco.
The
Western Sahara has remained a recurring decimal ever since in the equation of
liberation struggle in Africa. Efforts
at liberating the country have not proceeded beyond rhetoric at gatherings of
diplomats. The liberation struggle in the Western Sahara was also cut up in the
geopolitics of the cold war and of the Maghrebian region. As a liberation movement, the POLISARIO Frontwas
affiliated with socialist movements and liberation struggles worldwide. Such movements were protégées of the defunct
Soviet Union. Algeria the main supporter
of the POLISARIO Front was also in cordial relations with the Soviet
Union. On the other hand, the U.S. was
ideologically opposed to the Soviet camp.
Western Sahara was cut up in this web.
The U.S. was firmly in support of Morocco with which she had trading
agreements. This affected the Liberation
struggle in the Western Sahara. American antagonism to Libya and Algeria also
affected her perception of the Western Sahara.
The socialist bloc on the other hand, did not see the Maghreb as a major
theatre of the cold war and so did not go all out to join issues with Morocco
and the U.S. over the Western Sahara. In
any case, members of the Socialist bloc (major protagonists in the cold war)
had good trading relations with Morocco.
It is gratifying that civil society
organizations still continue to demonstrate solidarity with the POLISARIO Front
to keep the hope of liberation alive. It
will therefore be useful to know why the liberation struggle for the Western
Sahara has remained the way it is in order to be able to chart a new way
forward.
LIBERATION STRUGGLE IN
THE WESTERN SAHARA
SO FAR AND WAY FORWARD
The
liberation struggle in Western Sahara has remained the way it is for a host of
reasons. The first among this is the collective responsibility of the
international community. It has been
shown that Spain, Morocco and Mauritania at different times breached their
peremptory obligations as regard the principles of self-determination and
aggression. The international community
acquiesced to this infraction by not taking the appropriate action to call the
countries to order but simply resorted to resolutions that were ignored with
impunity. The Moroccan claim of pre-colonial
affiliation as a basis for the occupation of Western Sahara for example, was
the same reason given by Sadam’s Iraq to occupy Kuwait. Yet while the
international community found it expedient to punish Iraqi pretensions, it prevaricates
doing the same to Morocco. As we have
pointed out above, the conclusion of the Madrid agreement of 14th
November 1975 was a violation of the international principle of Jus Cogens. It was a basis for repudiating Soviet
acquisition of Baltic States (which the Soviet Union acquired in 1939) in
1989. The same consideration secured
East Timor’s independence from Indonesian illegal occupation. The international community continues to
prevaricate. The Moroccan aggression and
deprivation of the right of the Sahrawi to self-determination hasnot been
properly recognised for what it is.
Also,
both the OAU and its successor, the A.U. have not treated the Western Sahara
issue the way it should. The OAU, among
other things, committed itself to the total liberation of Africa from
colonialism and supremacist racist regimes.
As long as it is recognized that resolution 1514 (XV) applies to the
Western Sahara, the liberation of Africa remains an unfinished task. Both bodies have not seen the Western Sahara
question from this perspective and taken the necessary step in that direction.
As
a continent made up of former colonies, Africa is used to decolonization in
both its liberal and radical forms.
Africa has witnessed the rise and fall of apartheid, Portuguese
imperialism in Southern part of Africa, South Africa’s abuse and illegal
occupation of Namibia to mention but a few.
Africa evolved appropriate tactics and strategy to tackle these forms of
imperialism and colonialism. The end is
the liberation of these African states today.The Western Sahara has not seen
the use of these methods of liberation struggle.
Furthermore,
African countries should rise in unison to ensure the liberation of the Western
Sahara. The A.U. should put behind it
the internal divisions of the OAU which used to prevent joint actions against
Morocco which fortunately or unfortunately remains outside the continental
body.
To
do this, Africa should combine all the techniques it used to end apartheid,
illegal occupation of Namibia, the liberation of Portuguese colonies and
Zimbabwe to ensure the liberation of Western Sahara. This will entail getting the whole world to
declare continued Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara as a crime against humanity. This should be followed with the
establishment ofa Special Committee on Western Sahara Liberation in the United
Nations just as there was a UN Special Committee on Apartheid.
Also,
since we have claimed that the liberation of Africa is an unfinished task as
long as the Western Sahara remains occupied, the A.U. should resuscitate the
O.A.U. liberation committee with appropriate contributions from member states
both financially and military to assist the liberation struggle in the Western
Sahara.
In
the same vein, external support for the POLISARIO Frontshould be boosted. Hitherto, military support for the POLISARIO
Front had come from Algeria and other friendly countries. Apart from that,
external support for the POLISARIO Front had been more moral than
material. There is a need for more
material support.
Equally
necessary is the need for the A.U. to resume the diplomatic onslaught that
ended apartheid. Since Morocco has abandoned the A.U.; there is no harm in
ostracizing imperial Morocco the way apartheid South Africa was ostracized
before the liquidation of Apartheid.
This is to say that the A.U. should boycott all economic and cultural
relations with Morocco until it vacates the Western Sahara and campaign for the
international community to do the samejust as was done for apartheid South
Africa. This will see all African states
refusing to participate in the Olympic, World Cup, African Games and all other
sporting engagements in which imperial Morocco is participating. They should follow this up by also crusading
for the expulsion of Morocco from major world bodies just as was done for
apartheid South Africa. By so doing, the
A.U. would be sending a message of seriousness to the world about the
liberation of Western Sahara and ending colonialism in Africa.
Efforts
should also be made to have frontline states that will provide external basis
for the POLISARIO Front. This role is
best served by neighbouring countries such as Algeria and Mauritania. Such frontline states would provide safe
havens for the training of POLISARIO cadres, receipt of foreign assistance and
provision of health care facilities for the liberation fighters.
Last
but notthe least, as was the case with Namibia, there should be African
countries ready to take Morocco to the ICJ for its continued illegal occupation
of Western Sahara. This will keep the
liberation struggle in the consciousness of the international community and
ultimately ensure the liberation of Western Sahara and end colonialism in
Africa.
NOTES AND REFERENCES
1.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/western
(Accessed 18/10/13)
2.
Nigerian
Standard, 23-11-77.
3.
Ibid.
4.
Ibid.
6.
Jose
IgnaeioAlgueroCuervo “The Ancient History of Western Sahara and the Spanish
Colonisation of the Territory” in Karin Arts Pedro PunitoLeite (ed)
International Law and the Question of Western Sahara, Papers of The
International Conference on The Western Sahara, 2006, p. 26.
7.
Ibid.
8.
Ibid.
9.
Toby
Shelley, “Resistence and Colonialism: Building the Saharawi Identity” in Karin
Arts Pedro Pinto Leite (ed) International Law and - - - op cit., p. 31.
10.
Op
cit., p. 32.
11.
Daily
Sketch of 2/01/1978.
12.
Roger
Clark, “Western Sahara and the United Nations Norms on Self Determinations” in
Karin Arts Pedro Pinto Leite International Law and the Questions - - - op.
cit., p. 46.
13.
Ibid.
14.
Ibid.
15.
LauriHannikainen
“The Case of Western Sahara from the Perspective of Jus Cogens” in Karin Arts -
- - op. cit., p. 59.
16.
Ibid.
17.
Ibid.
18.
Advisory Opinion on
Western Sahara, 1975, ICJ, http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?sum=323&p1=3&p2=4&case=61&p3=5, (accessed 24-10-13).
19.
LawriHanuilkainen
“The Case - - -, p. 60
20.
Koger
Clark Western Sahara and the United Nations - - - , p. 55.
21.
LauriHannikainean,
The Case ---, p. 76.
22.
Eduardo
Trillo De Martins – Pinillos “Spain as Administering Power of Western Sahara in
Karin Arts - - - , p. 80.
23.
Ibid.
24.
Nigerian
Herald 24-11-1982.
25.
Ibid.
African conference for solidarity with the struggle
of the people of Western Sahara, 28th-30th October, 2013,
Abuja – Nigeria.
LIBERATING THE WESTERN SAHARA:
ENDING COLONIALISM IN AFRICA
Second Panel:
Action On Armed Violence (AOAV)
Saving lives and supporting livelihoods through humanitarian mine action
in Western Sahara.
By
Mr. Ahmed
Sid Ali, Country Manager of the British NGO, Action On Armed Violence AOAV, UK.
Overview
and History of the Programme
Western Sahara is littered
with explosive remnants of war. It is potentially one of the world’s most
heavily contaminated areas, yet there is little international awareness of the
scale and ongoing impact of the problem. Deadly unexploded ordnance (UXO) and
landmines continue to pose unacceptable risks to the Saharawi population and
limit their ability to develop economically and socially.
Since 2007, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) has cleared over 25 million m2 of land of cluster munitions, landmines and other explosive remnants of war from the eastern half of Western Sahara. AOAV provides 24/7 emergency response in case of mine/UXO-related accidents; AOAV’s medics are often the only life-line for communities living in remote areas. AOAV also helps the Saharawi build their own capacity in mine action, training its local staff to international mine action standards and developing technical expertise within POLISARIO in collaboration with UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS).
AOAV also identifies and supports the victims of landmines and UXO, of which 1,340 have been registered by AOAV’s partner, the Saharawi Association for the Victims of Mines (ASAVIM). AOAV and ASAVIM recently developed a pilot project to assist almost 100 survivors to build their socio-economic independence.
Since 2007, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) has cleared over 25 million m2 of land of cluster munitions, landmines and other explosive remnants of war from the eastern half of Western Sahara. AOAV provides 24/7 emergency response in case of mine/UXO-related accidents; AOAV’s medics are often the only life-line for communities living in remote areas. AOAV also helps the Saharawi build their own capacity in mine action, training its local staff to international mine action standards and developing technical expertise within POLISARIO in collaboration with UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS).
AOAV also identifies and supports the victims of landmines and UXO, of which 1,340 have been registered by AOAV’s partner, the Saharawi Association for the Victims of Mines (ASAVIM). AOAV and ASAVIM recently developed a pilot project to assist almost 100 survivors to build their socio-economic independence.
AOAV’s clearance work is conducted with the support of UNMAS and the Norwegian government, which also supports AOAV’s victim assistance programme.
Achievements
AOAV
has cleared over 25,000,000 sq metres of land, found and destroyed over 23,000
dangerous items all while providing 24/7 lifesaving emergency medical response
and building the capacity of local authorities in mine action.
In
addition to weapons removal, AOAV has supported victims of ERW. We have
surveyed over 1,340 victims of ERW and provide livelihoods support to victims.
AOAV Activities
AOAV’s
activities range from battlefield clearance to victim assistance projects that
I will go through in more detail now.
AOAV
has worked in partnership with MINURSO, particularly the Mine Action
Coordination Centre (MACC) which has provided support to the programme.
AOAV
also works in close cooperation with POLISARIO representatives including local
liaison officers who provide logistic support to the programme and useful
geographic and historic information for the surveyed regions.
Battle Area
Clearance
Since 2007, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) has
cleared over 25 million m2 of land of cluster munitions, landmines and other
explosive remnants of war from the eastern half of Western Sahara.
The territory still contains high levels of contamination
and the people of Western Sahara continue to live with the threat of explosive
remnants of war (ERW).
Mechanical
Clearance
AOAV has also been able to expand its mine action
programme to include mechanical clearance.
To date, AOAV has cleared 502,368 square meters of
land through mechanical clearance
Victim
Assistance
In 2012, AOAV and the local Saharawi Victims’
Association (ASAVIM) solidified their partnership in developing the victim
assistance needs assessment and database and work to support victims and
survivors of ERW.
With partners and stakeholders AOAV identified five
priorities:
1. improving
access to livelihoods opportunities;
2. improving
access to quality health care and medical services;
3. enhancing
capacities and skills and improving access to training and education
opportunities for survivors;
4. promoting the rights of and strengthening
legal protection for survivors and rights of people with disabilities; and
5. deepening
survey process and data collection and sharing.
Survivors
Cooperatives
Part of AOAV’s victim assistance programme includes
expanding the micro-grants scheme to support more survivors and provide
training and capacity building to AOAV’s local partner ASAVIM (Saharawi Mine
Victims’ Association).
The Microgrants project was welcomed by survivors, families and authorities.
21 Cooperatives were funded in 2012
98 survivors benefited from project out of 159
applications received.
27 Cooperatives were funded in 2013, with 116
survivors benefited.
In 2013, AOAV developed a new part re-payment scheme to
encourage independence, were 10 Cooperatives funded from 2012 cooperatives.
Sidi’s
Story
SidiBoyemhaBibi is one of the beneficiaries of the Micro
grants project
Like many of the other beneficiaries, he is an ERW
survivor supporting a large family.
He and 2 other cooperative members received a grant
of 300,000 DZD for a 6 month cattle raising project.
With the 30% profit from each goat, Sidi hopes to
grow fodder and build an enclosure to continue this business.
National
Capacity Building
As a humanitarian organisation AOAV is committed to
building the professional skills of its Saharawi staff. All operational staff
received the required demining drills and exercises and was assessed
accordingly.
AOAV is working to establish a Saharawi Mine Action
Coordination Centre for more effective Mine Action coordination.
AOAV supports with producing national Mine Action
standards and MA Strategy.
AOAV is assisting Polisario in its process for
stockpiles distruction, where Polisario destroyed up to know over 10.000 AP on
4 stages.
Developing
Programmes: Land Productivity
With local agricultural engineers and international
specialists, AOAV has developed plans for pilot sustainable land productivity
projects to enable affected communities to use cleared land for sustainable
livelihoods.
The proposed project involves training local
communities and survivor cooperatives to start gardens in cleared areas to
increase agricultural initiatives and build technical capacity that will create
sustainable livelihoods for Saharawi communities.
Developing
Programmes continued: Gender Focused Projects
AOAV is committed to
ensuring gender sensitivity in its mine action work.
Since the beginning of AOAV’s focus on gender and
mine action, AOAV has made a number of positive steps towards increasing its
gender sensitivity within the Western Sahara programme.
In 2012, AOAV developed a
gender assessment methodology in consultation with the Gender and Mine Action
Programme (GMAP), Gender Peace and Security (GAPS-UK) and an independent
expert. The gender assessment aimed to evaluate and identify areas of
improvement for AOAV’s mine action programme on a number of levels – including
examining programme design, implementation and impact – in relation to how its
programme in Western Sahara interacts with the local context. As a framework,
the assessment methodology used the UN Gender Guidelines for Mine Action
Programmes. The audit focused on human resources, victim assistance, clearance
and mine risk education.
Future
Work
In addition to AOAV’s ongoing clearance
work, AOAV has plans to continue to expand and deepen its work in support of
mine action, victim assistance, and work with vulnerable communities. This includes training and deploying
additional manual deminers, building the capacity of theSaharawi authorities to
take great leadership in mine action, providing additional grants and partial
loans to victims’ cooperatives, and conducting livelihood projects to generate
sustainable economic opportunities for landmine and UXO victims, their
families, and vulnerable groups such as youth and women
In the future, AOAV plans to conduct a survey of the
5km buffer zone around the Morocco’s Berm, as the majority of accident took
place in this area, and civilians are exposed to accident due to minefield and migration of mined after
floods and heavy rains.
One proposed programme would target youth and
violence, encouraging young men and women to use non-violent means to resolve
frustration with their political situation.
African conference for
solidarity with the struggle of the people of Western Sahara, 28th-30th
October, 2013, Abuja – Nigeria.
LIBERATING THE WESTERN
SAHARA:
ENDING COLONIALISM IN AFRICA
Speech by Vice President of Pan African
Parliament Sueilma Beiruk
On behalf of the President of the Pan African
Parliament, H.E Hon. Bethel Amadi Nnaemeka I would like to express our
gratitude to the organizers of the African Conference of Solidarity with the
Struggle of the Saharawi people for inviting us to this important event.
I would also like to thank the National Labour Congress, the civil society and
the people of Nigeria for their hospitality.
Since its foundation the PAP has always been following
closely the developments of the Western Sahara conflict as the last
decolonization case in our continent. We consider the right to
self-determination, the respect for human rights and the achievement of our
peoples’ welfare towards the continental integration as key principles in
compliance with the objectives and principles of the African Union charter and
the protocol establishing the PAP.
The Western Sahara conflict has always been on
the agenda of the Pan-African Parliament. As representatives of the African
peoples we have an essential commitment to defending the right of the people of
Western Sahara to self- determination. In this sense, the PAP has carried out
several initiatives for a greater awareness on the issue of Western Sahara.
PAP has endorsed numerous resolutions on Western
Sahara. It has deployed missions of support and solidarity and organized
sessions with Saharawi human rights activists to update the Pan African
Parliament on the situation in the occupied territories. These initiatives
culminated in the election of a Sahrawi MP as vice president of the Pan-African
Parliament coinciding with the fiftieth anniversary of our continental
organization.
As vice president of the Pan African
Parliament and as a Saharawi woman representing her people in this African
institution I would like to express on behalf of the President of the Pan
African Parliament our satisfaction to be present in this African conference of
solidarity with the Saharawi people and wish to reiterate our continued
commitment to put an end to the suffering of one of our sister countries in the
continent.
We believe that time has come for the UN
and African Union to double their efforts so that the Saharawi people can enjoy
their inalienable right to freedom and independence as the rest of the African
countries.
Once again, thank you for the invitation and I
wish you success in your deliberations.
African
conference for solidarity with the struggle of the people of Western Sahara, 28th-30th
October, 2013, Abuja – Nigeria.
LIBERATING
THE WESTERN SAHARA:
ENDING
COLONIALISM IN AFRICA
Testimony
of Commander Ese Okiti, rtd, former MINURSO Chief of Staff, Nigeria
Greetings (Protocol)
1. It is a rare privilege to be here and for this august gathering to spare the
time to listen to me. Although I was military man, I was always captivated
by the concept and existence of the United Nations (UN) a body bringing humanity together as one big family.
Although schooled in War, I have always
been fascinated by the UN peace projects
especially its peace keeping programmes; the idea of assembling
soldiers from various parts of the world
to keep peace in various part of our admittedly volatile world.
2. I never expected to be part of such a
peace keeping family; so understandably I was shocked and pleasantly surprise when in 2004, I was nominated to go on a peace keeping mission for the
world body. I was then a Wing Commander in the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and I
was to be Military Observer (MILOB) in the United Nations Mission for the
Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).
3. I left Nigeria on 10th April, 2004 through
Paris and Casablanca and arrived Laayoune on 11th April, 2004 and
was lodged in Lakuaza hotel. I reported
at MINURSO force headquarters (FHQ) on 12th April, 2004 for a
one year tour of duty and took over as the Contingent Commander (CONTICO) of
the Nigerian Contingent . After completing
the mandatory 5-day in
processing program, I was deployed to Team site (TS) Tifariti in the POLISARIO
side of the North sector. We were airlifted
to the desert and finally arrived
Tifariti; there were no houses as
we knew them; we stayed in tents called weather heavens. Also, there only
Saharawis.
And
in the six months I spent there, our basic duty was to monitor the ceasefire between the Moroccan Armed
Forces and the POLISARIO. We checked
what we called order of Battle
(ORBAT). We went on patrols, check the weapons of the POLISARIO, whether they
have increased or reduced. If there are any discrepancies, we query them and informed MINURSO FHQ. If there is any arms or
ammunitions movement , they have to
apply for permission to the UN through MINURSO FHQ. I was there when the Twelfth
Congress and the Thirty Fifth
anniversary of the POLISARIO and open
session of the Saharawi Parliament held.
It was a carnival - like event for the people, as foreign delegates , foreign dignitaries and international media and press were there also. But for me
it was a hectic and joyous period
because of the large influx of
people and to add to my pleasure, I did not understand a sentence of what they were discussing as I did not
understand a sentence of what they were discussing as I did not speak or
understand Arabic, Spanish or French. I was overwhelmed to see an oppressed people coming together and being
supported by the presence of people
from other countries.
4. Tifariti is a desert area and life for
the people was quite tough. When we
went on patrol, we usually give out
water packs to them, water was the most difficult thing to get. We also gave out food packs from
our ration. This was completely a
private initiative, not official, but given
the pitiable condition on the ground, this to us seemed the natural thing to
do. They are mainly nomads, so by the time we are returning we won’t see them,
they would have moved on due to sand storm and other unforeseen circumstances.
However,
despite what I will described as their desperate situation, they seemed quite
contented that they were in their homestead free from what they regarded as
foreign rule and colonization. The
Saharawis I met on the side, what is referred to as the “liberated side” were
quite free. They went wherever pleased them and there were no human right
abuses.At least non occurred to my understanding throughout the six months I
stayed there. The only contact we had there were with POLISARIO soldiers. They
seemed to like us and appeared grateful. Whenever they come across us their
faces lit up. It also appeared that they specially loved Nigerians.
5. I was the patrol leader and my driver was
an Egyptian officer, once we went to a Saharawi camp, the camp commander was so
excited that he was meeting a Nigerian,
he killed a young camel and gave me to
eat with traditional three cups of tea. I was told it is a tradition in honour of a royal
guest. I also learnt that the Saharawis
believe that Nigeria is a consistent and principled country
when it comes to the issue of decolonization of the entire African
continent especially the “last colony”.
6. Let me explain that Western Sahara is cut into two by a
Morrocan wall called the BERM. On the
Saharawi side we have five team sites (ITS), these are Tifariti, Bir Lehlou,
Mehaires, Mijek and Agwanit. On the other side controlled by the Morocans we have four team sites,
Mahbas, Smara, Oum Dreyga and Aswad, while laayoune is the UN headquarters. It
should be noted that Tindouf is used as a liaison office which is responsible for the POLISARIO government in exile at
Rabouni (Algeria). This office has no team site.
7. In October 2004, I was posted to the
force headquarters in Laayoune as the Chief Military Personnel Officer (CMPO).
I also acted as the Chief of Staff (CSO)
military and force commander (FC) while the incumbents were away on leave
and on duty outside the mission area
respectively. It is also worthy to note that I invited the Nigerian Ambassador to Moroco to come to MINURSO. He came and was
briefed by the SRSG and the FC on the current situation in Western Sahara. He
was the first Ambassador of an African nation to visit MINURSO. His commendation on me made my stay
in the mission to be extended by
three months by the Nigerian government.
I stayed at Nagjir hotel.
Morocans
and Saharawis live together in laayoune
and we in the UN went around town without difficulty as both sides
respected the UN. On every typical street in Laayoune, the Moroccans stationed a
soldier and a policeman each at the
beginning and end of the street. They
randomly stop Saharawi youth to check their identity. It was in laayoune I
witnessed the demolition of Saharawi houses. It reminded me of the
force removal of the black population by
the apartheid regime in the 1950s under
the infamous Group Area Act. The
Saharawis protested and their
protest was met with stiff oppositions
where they were battered and bulldozers used to demolish their houses. Some of them were physically beaten
and dehumanized. We could not do anything as our mandate does not
include monitoring of human rights abuses.
8. On 5th March, 2005 which is
the international women’s day, Saharawi women did a sit-in in the square in
front of Nagjir hotel where I happened to be staying. In the twinkling of an eye, Moroccan policemen
arrived and baton-charged the
defenceless women. Despite the ferocious attacks
of the Moroccan policemen, the
women seemed to dig-in deeper, refusing
to give up or move. They were physically
on the ground. I felt very bad witnessing this level of violation by the policemen against
clearly weaker and defenceless women.
Worse still I felt a sense of importence
as we could only watch because our mandate as MINURSO is to enforce the
ceasefire and brutality unfolding before our eyes was live a conventional war.
So we could not enforce a ceasefire. I
was convinced that the UN since 1984 had
adopted the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and should not stand
by and be a spectator in any part of the
world when fundamental human rights are
being grossly abused. My mind also raced
to the genocide in Rwanda ten years earlier (1994) which occurred in the presence of the UN troops who were constituted under the United Nations Assembly Mission in Rwanda (UNAMIR).
But
tragically, their mandate was primarily to monitor ceasefire lines. They had no
power to intervene. Consequently, over 850,000 Rwandees mainly Tutsis were
massacred within a hundred days. A post
mortem UN commission concluded that the failure by the United Nations to
prevent and subsequently to stop the genocide in Rwanda was a failure by the United Nations
as a whole. I think that the world should
not allow a repeat of the Rwanda
situation anywhere in the world.
Hence I felt, and still feel quite
strongly that the mandate of the MINURSO
should be expanded to include
the protection of fundamental human rights in Western Sahara.
9. Another event I witnessed was in the same
Nagjir square in May 2005. Saharawi youths were protesting peacefully
with flags when Moroccans youth
carrying their country flag arrived to confront them. The Moroccan policemen arrived and violently dispersed the Saharawi youths. We had no mandate to separate
both sides or intervene, so the order was given that all MINURSO staff should evacuate
the area so that we were not caught in
the violence. We had to leave and take refuge in Sahara line hotel till the fracas
subsided.
10. Majority of the Saharawis lived mainly in
poor houses, many of them not fit for human habitation. The Moroccans
government had gone to build some
modern houses for the Saharawis but the
latter refused to move in arguing that the new houses were not built by their
government and that since they do not
recognize Moroccan lordship over their
ancestral homes, they cannot live in houses built by Moroccans. Again, the
Moroccans beat and forced the Saharawis to move into the new shelters.
11. These were the main acts of human rights
abuses i witnessed. Although my fellow
MILOBs reported several cases while the Saharawis made frequent reports of police brutality, detentions and other human rights
abuses. I also know from experience in
Western Sahara that neither the Red Cross nor the United Nation’s High
Commission for Refugees can monitor
human rights in the territory.
12. Let me clarify that these human rights
abuses including the one we witnessed did not form part of our reports
because like I have explained. It is not
part of our mandate. This is precisely
why MINURSO mandate should be expanded
to include protection, monitoring
and enforcement of human rights in
Western Sahara.
13. I am aware that the United Nations office
of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressed concern
about the human rights situation in Western Sahara. Even Human Rights Watch
are of the opinion and indeed
recommended that the UN should
include human rights monitoring and reporting
in both Western Sahara in the POLISARIO administered camps in Algeria, in MINURSO mandate.
I
am certain that if this is done, at the very least, Morocco will begin to be cautious knowing
that there will be independent and credible reports of human rights abuses
in the territory. And that it risks international sanctions, laayoune
and other occupied territories are under military siege. International
media, observers and NGOs are not allowed across to monitor human rights
abuses.
14. My fervent prayer is that the next time I
am in Laayoune is for the Independence
Parade and Celebration of the Freedom of Western Sahara- The last Colony
in Africa.
Thank
you.
African conference for solidarity with the struggle
of the people of Western Sahara, 28th-30th October, 2013,
Abuja – Nigeria.
LIBERATING THE WESTERN SAHARA:
ENDING COLONIALISM IN AFRICA
Second Panel:
Action On Armed Violence (AOAV)
Saving lives and supporting livelihoods through humanitarian mine action
in Western Sahara.
By
Mr. Ahmed
Sid Ali, Country Manager of the British NGO, Action On Armed Violence AOAV, UK.
Overview
and History of the Programme
Western Sahara is littered
with explosive remnants of war. It is potentially one of the world’s most
heavily contaminated areas, yet there is little international awareness of the
scale and ongoing impact of the problem. Deadly unexploded ordnance (UXO) and
landmines continue to pose unacceptable risks to the Saharawi population and
limit their ability to develop economically and socially.
Since 2007, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) has cleared over 25 million m2 of land of cluster munitions, landmines and other explosive remnants of war from the eastern half of Western Sahara. AOAV provides 24/7 emergency response in case of mine/UXO-related accidents; AOAV’s medics are often the only life-line for communities living in remote areas. AOAV also helps the Saharawi build their own capacity in mine action, training its local staff to international mine action standards and developing technical expertise within POLISARIO in collaboration with UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS).
AOAV also identifies and supports the victims of landmines and UXO, of which 1,340 have been registered by AOAV’s partner, the Saharawi Association for the Victims of Mines (ASAVIM). AOAV and ASAVIM recently developed a pilot project to assist almost 100 survivors to build their socio-economic independence.
Since 2007, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) has cleared over 25 million m2 of land of cluster munitions, landmines and other explosive remnants of war from the eastern half of Western Sahara. AOAV provides 24/7 emergency response in case of mine/UXO-related accidents; AOAV’s medics are often the only life-line for communities living in remote areas. AOAV also helps the Saharawi build their own capacity in mine action, training its local staff to international mine action standards and developing technical expertise within POLISARIO in collaboration with UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS).
AOAV also identifies and supports the victims of landmines and UXO, of which 1,340 have been registered by AOAV’s partner, the Saharawi Association for the Victims of Mines (ASAVIM). AOAV and ASAVIM recently developed a pilot project to assist almost 100 survivors to build their socio-economic independence.
AOAV’s clearance work is conducted with the support of UNMAS and the Norwegian government, which also supports AOAV’s victim assistance programme.
Achievements
AOAV
has cleared over 25,000,000 sq metres of land, found and destroyed over 23,000
dangerous items all while providing 24/7 lifesaving emergency medical response
and building the capacity of local authorities in mine action.
In
addition to weapons removal, AOAV has supported victims of ERW. We have
surveyed over 1,340 victims of ERW and provide livelihoods support to victims.
AOAV Activities
AOAV’s
activities range from battlefield clearance to victim assistance projects that
I will go through in more detail now.
AOAV
has worked in partnership with MINURSO, particularly the Mine Action
Coordination Centre (MACC) which has provided support to the programme.
AOAV
also works in close cooperation with POLISARIO representatives including local
liaison officers who provide logistic support to the programme and useful
geographic and historic information for the surveyed regions.
Battle Area
Clearance
Since 2007, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) has
cleared over 25 million m2 of land of cluster munitions, landmines and other
explosive remnants of war from the eastern half of Western Sahara.
The territory still contains high levels of contamination
and the people of Western Sahara continue to live with the threat of explosive
remnants of war (ERW).
Mechanical
Clearance
AOAV has also been able to expand its mine action
programme to include mechanical clearance.
To date, AOAV has cleared 502,368 square meters of
land through mechanical clearance
Victim
Assistance
In 2012, AOAV and the local Saharawi Victims’
Association (ASAVIM) solidified their partnership in developing the victim
assistance needs assessment and database and work to support victims and
survivors of ERW.
With partners and stakeholders AOAV identified five
priorities:
1. improving
access to livelihoods opportunities;
2. improving
access to quality health care and medical services;
3. 8enhancing
capacities and skills and improving access to training and education
opportunities for survivors;
4. promoting the rights of and strengthening
legal protection for survivors and rights of people with disabilities; and
5. deepening
survey process and data collection and sharing.
Survivors
Cooperatives
Part of AOAV’s victim assistance programme includes
expanding the micro-grants scheme to support more survivors and provide
training and capacity building to AOAV’s local partner ASAVIM (Saharawi Mine
Victims’ Association).
The Microgrants project was welcomed by survivors, families and authorities.
21 Cooperatives were funded in 2012
98 survivors benefited from project out of 159
applications received.
27 Cooperatives were funded in 2013, with 116
survivors benefited.
In 2013, AOAV developed a new part re-payment scheme to
encourage independence, were 10 Cooperatives funded from 2012 cooperatives.
Sidi’s
Story
SidiBoyemhaBibi is one of the beneficiaries of the Micro
grants project
Like many of the other beneficiaries, he is an ERW
survivor supporting a large family.
He and 2 other cooperative members received a grant
of 300,000 DZD for a 6 month cattle raising project.
With the 30% profit from each goat, Sidi hopes to
grow fodder and build an enclosure to continue this business.
National
Capacity Building
As a humanitarian organisation AOAV is committed to
building the professional skills of its Saharawi staff. All operational staff
received the required demining drills and exercises and was assessed
accordingly.
AOAV is working to establish a Saharawi Mine Action
Coordination Centre for more effective Mine Action coordination.
AOAV supports with producing national Mine Action
standards and MA Strategy.
AOAV is assisting Polisario in its process for
stockpiles distruction, where Polisario destroyed up to know over 10.000 AP on
4 stages.
Developing
Programmes: Land Productivity
With local agricultural engineers and international
specialists, AOAV has developed plans for pilot sustainable land productivity
projects to enable affected communities to use cleared land for sustainable
livelihoods.
The proposed project involves training local
communities and survivor cooperatives to start gardens in cleared areas to
increase agricultural initiatives and build technical capacity that will create
sustainable livelihoods for Saharawi communities.
Developing
Programmes continued: Gender Focused Projects
AOAV is committed to
ensuring gender sensitivity in its mine action work.
Since the beginning of AOAV’s focus on gender and
mine action, AOAV has made a number of positive steps towards increasing its
gender sensitivity within the Western Sahara programme.
In 2012, AOAV developed a
gender assessment methodology in consultation with the Gender and Mine Action
Programme (GMAP), Gender Peace and Security (GAPS-UK) and an independent
expert. The gender assessment aimed to evaluate and identify areas of
improvement for AOAV’s mine action programme on a number of levels – including
examining programme design, implementation and impact – in relation to how its
programme in Western Sahara interacts with the local context. As a framework,
the assessment methodology used the UN Gender Guidelines for Mine Action
Programmes. The audit focused on human resources, victim assistance, clearance
and mine risk education.
Future
Work
In addition to AOAV’s ongoing clearance
work, AOAV has plans to continue to expand and deepen its work in support of
mine action, victim assistance, and work with vulnerable communities. This includes training and deploying
additional manual deminers, building the capacity of theSaharawi authorities to
take great leadership in mine action, providing additional grants and partial
loans to victims’ cooperatives, and conducting livelihood projects to generate
sustainable economic opportunities for landmine and UXO victims, their
families, and vulnerable groups such as youth and women
In the future, AOAV plans to conduct a survey of the
5km buffer zone around the Morocco’s Berm, as the majority of accident took
place in this area, and civilians are exposed to accident due to minefield and migration of mined after
floods and heavy rains.
One proposed programme would target youth and
violence, encouraging young men and women to use non-violent means to resolve
frustration with their political situation.
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