URU, Alm.del - 2016-17 - Bilag 219: Henvendelse af 13/6-17 fra Dansk Marokkansk Råd om Vestsahara

Udenrigsudvalget 2016-17
URU Alm.del Bilag 219
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Morocco’s legitimate claims to sovereignty

over its Western Sahara territory

On April the 28th, 2017, the UN Security Council adopted a new Resolution on Western

Sahara.

This annual review is a new opportunity to reiterate Morocco's legitimate

standpoint on this regional dispute.

The Kingdom of Morocco seeks to complete its post-colonial territorial

integrity:

The Kingdom of Morocco was divided into several zones of occupation by

European powers. Morocco begun to achieve its independence in 1956 when France and

Spain retroceded the central and northern zones. The Decolonization process of the

Southern area started in 1958 when Spain handed back the city of Tarfaya to Morocco.

“Western Sahara” has been on the United Nations list of «

non-self-governing

territories » at UN Special Committee on Decolonization since 1963 as a result of a

Moroccan request.

In 1965, the UN Assembly adopted its first Resolution on “Western

Sahara” urging Spain “ to take immediately all necessary measures for the liberation of

Ifni & Western Sahara from colonial domination and to conduct for this purpose

negotiations on the problems related to the sovereignty over these two territories."

In 1969, Spain gave up Sidi Ifni to Morocco. The Madrid Agreement (1975) marked the

end of Spanish presence in the Sahara territory, with the consent of local tribes approving

the Sahara decolonization and reintegration in Morocco and Mauritania). In 1979,

Morocco reintegrates the Southern areas (Oued Eddahab and Sakia El Hamra) after the

withdrawal of Mauritania.

The International Court of Justice in the Hague issued an Advisory opinion

asserting the « historical ties between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Sahara

territory »:

The ICJ Advisory opinion recognized the principle of «

Bay’a

», the historical

and legal ties of allegiance between the Sultans of Morocco and the local tribes of the

Sahara. In Islamic law, power is exercised over a territory when its local people swear

allegiance to an authority. The «

Bay’a

» principle was applied throughout centuries

between Morocco and the Sahara tribes until the colonization of the country by foreign

powers.

As a matter of fact, the leader of one of the most important tribes in Western Sahara, M.

Cheikh Maa el Ainine, swore allegiance to the Sultan of Morocco and organized a military

campaign against the Spanish occupation forces.

Moreover, tens of International treaties including the Sahara area were concluded

between the Sultan of Morocco and other powers throughout centuries : with Spain

(1767-1861), with the United States of America (1786-1836), with The United Kingdom

(1895), with France and Germany in 1911. These treaties provided guaranties from the

Sultan of Morocco to foreign powers to protect and assist sailors and vessels on

Moroccan coasts including the southern ports.

URU, Alm.del - 2016-17 - Bilag 219: Henvendelse af 13/6-17 fra Dansk Marokkansk Råd om Vestsahara

For at least the last three centuries, the

Sahara has been undeniably Moroccan; many

famous explorers in different eras testify to this fact in their memoirs; amongst which

Djouder Pasha in his expedition to Niger in 1591 and the French Rene Caille in his

tinerary from Timbuktu to the Atlantic

coast via the “Tafilalet” in 1820.

−

The failure of the African Union’s mediation

: After the departure of Spain, a new

page of the conflict was opened. The Sahara is still a "Non-Self-Governing

Territory" when the Moroccan and Algerian armies confront each other on at least

two occasions (1975 and 1976). The Polisario Front, created in 1973 by Moroccan

scholars of Saharawi origin, and the majority of whom returned to Morocco, relied

on Gaddafi's Libya before finding broad Algerian military and diplomatic support.

In 1976, Morocco appealed to African mediation through the Organization of

African Unity. Morocco demonstrated its good intentions at the 1981 Nairobi

Summit by accepting the referendum procedure. Due to the bias of this

organization in the treatment of the dispute (breach of the principle of neutrality,

admission of an entity devoid of any attribute of sovereignty from the point of

view of international law), which led to the failure of a solution of mediation in

Africa, Morocco naturally turned to the United Nations to take charge of the

solution of the dispute.

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The treatment of the issue within the UN:

The Sahara issue is mainly examined by

the Security Council as a regional dispute. This dispute is in fact between Morocco

and Algeria, which acts underhandedly through the “Polisario” organization,

created in 1973 by a few Moroccan scholars of Saharawi origin, the majority of

whom have returned back to Morocco since then. The Sahara conflict was created

in a regional and international context marked by the Cold War. Thus, Algeria and

Libya (of Kaddafi) pledged to provide their military, diplomatic and financial

support to the separatist movement of

the “Polisario”, to the detriment of the

geo-strategic interests of Morocco.

The 1991 ceasefire ended the armed conflict (which lasted from 1976 to 1990)

between Morocco and the “Polisario” and placed the territory of Sahara under the

responsibility of Morocco, in agreement with the United Nations. This Settlement

Plan also included "the organization of a referendum on self-determination ». The

organization of a referendum was a complicated task in its implementation as their

were many difficulties in identifying the electorate.

Subsequently, Morocco accepted the Baker I Plan in 2000, which consisted in

negotiating a framework agreement between all the parties (including Algeria). In

reaction, the Algerian President, Mr. Abdelaziz Bouteflika, traveled to Houston on

November the 2nd, 2001 to request the division of the territory, which Morocco

did not accept. The Baker II plan of 2002 (Peace Plan for the Self-Determination

of the People of Sahara) was rejected by Morocco because it considered the

referendum as a key solution, ignoring the fundamental dilemma of identifying the

electorate.

URU, Alm.del - 2016-17 - Bilag 219: Henvendelse af 13/6-17 fra Dansk Marokkansk Råd om Vestsahara

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The Autonomy proposal,

'' No winner, no loser ‘' : To break the stalemate, Morocco

proposed in 2007 an Autonomy Plan for its Saharan region. This new initiative

found a positive response amongst the international community; it was considered

by many powers as « credible and realistic ». In 2008, Peter Van Walsum (then

Personal Envoy of the UN SG for the Sahara) said, that independence is not a

realistic goal and that the “Polisario” should give it up.

In this Moroccan proposal, the population of the Moroccan Sahara would be self-

governed, within the framework of the Sahara Autonomous Region in accordance

with democratic principles and procedures through an elected Parliament, a

Regional Government and local courts. The autonomous local region would be

accountable for the local administration, the management of local resources, the

infrastructure and culture.

The initiative also provides that the Moroccan State retains exclusive competence

in the fields of religion, security and national defense as well as foreign affairs.

Morocco's proposal, while offering local populations the possibility of self-

government, ensures stability and security for neighboring countries and the entire

Sahel and Atlantic region.

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Self-determination is not independence:

The General Assembly of the United

Nations identifies four distinct solutions to self-determination: independence,

association, integration and "any other freely chosen political status" (Resolution

2625). The Moroccan proposal stresses that "the status of autonomy, resulting

from the negotiations, will be subject to a referendum consultation by the local

populations in accordance with the principle of self-determination and the Charter

of the United Nations".

−

The consequences of a no-solution in the Sahara issue:

This dispute has hindered

the establishment of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) between the Maghreb

countries. The cost of this non-Maghreb revolves around the two points of loss of

GDP for each country, impacting the level of trade between them (estimated at

1.3% of their foreign trade, the lowest regional rate in the world) and The annual

loss of nearly 220,000 jobs. Political collaboration between these countries would

solve problems on the southern shore of the Mediterranean but also on the

northern shore, in particular Migration. In order not to remain hostage to the

dispute, and without compromising the UN process, Morocco calls for its

collaboration, notably with Algeria.

−

The new development model for the southern provinces:

When the provinces of

southern Morocco were recovered, everything had yet to be done. Since 1976,

Morocco has made considerable efforts to develop a model for the development

of the southern provinces. As a result, the Human Development Index (HDI),

measured by UNDP, is 0.643 in the Sahara region compared to 0.612 at a national

level, with an increase of 11.6% between 2004 and 2014 (compared to 8.4% in key

Moroccan cities like Casablanca and 9% in Rabat).

URU, Alm.del - 2016-17 - Bilag 219: Henvendelse af 13/6-17 fra Dansk Marokkansk Råd om Vestsahara

Today, this model, which is intended as an instrument for the application and

acceleration of advanced regionalization, relies mainly on the solidarity mechanism

between the twelve Moroccan regions and in which the two southern provinces

are the main beneficiaries (for

€ 1 produced in the Sahara, € 7

are invested). In

November 2015, to accelerate the development of these regions, a new multi-

sectoral plan of more than 7 billion euros was launched. The private sector will

have a key role to play in the implementation of future projects in the region of € 4

billion, or 54% of the overall budget.

This process is carried out in an inclusive manner involving the various actors,

notably within CORCAS (composed of all the Sahara tribes), regional councils and

elected bodies (nearly 10,000 local and regional representatives) and through

Representatives of civil society. Moreover, during the last elections of 2016 in

Morocco, the highest participation rates were recorded in these southern

provinces, reflecting the trust that the institutions and the electoral process enjoy

among the inhabitants of the region.

By contrast, in the Tindouf camps (Algeria), the credibility of Polisario's

representativeness suffers from the absence of free and democratic elections for

decades. Several controversies remain regarding the sequestration of entire families

to stop them from joining back their tribes in Morocco.