Bir Lehlou, July 27, 2024 (SPS) – The Sahrawi government confirmed in a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that France’s adoption of this escalating position by supporting the so-called autonomy plan completely excludes it from all international efforts related to decolonization of Western Sahara.
The statement explained that the Sahrawi Republic government confirms that France’s adoption of this hostile and escalating position completely excludes it from all international efforts related to decolonization of Western Sahara, but rather places it in the category of the occupier and makes it an undesirable party for the Sahrawi side, including its participation in the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).”The government of the Sahrawi Republic strongly condemns.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Sahrawi Arabic Democratic Republic
COMMUNIQUÉ
The Government of the Sahrawi Republic (SADR) condemns in the strongest terms the French Government’s reported affirmation of its hostile position towards the Sahrawi people and their inalienable right to freedom, independence and self-determination. This situation, which constitutes a dangerous escalation, will have serious consequences for peace, security and stability in the entire region.
The Sahrawi people will never forget France’s colonial past and its direct involvement in the attempts aimed to exterminate our people and suppress their resistance since the beginning of the 20th century and in the mid-fifties and mid-seventies. France also used its military machinery, including Jaguar aircrafts, to bomb Sahrawi civilians, and she continues to provide multidimensional support for Morocco’s illegal occupation of Western Sahara since 31 October 1975.
This position, which is contrary to the principles of international law and to the international obligations of France as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, reveals France’s involvement in the ongoing aggression against the Sahrawi people. It also confirms clearly that France is a direct and premeditated accomplice to all the crimes associated with the continuing genocidal war waged by the Moroccan occupying state against our people.
Moreover, this position uncovers once again the true colonial face of France, which boasts of being the “cradle” of the first universal declaration of human rights. Those who truly embrace human rights do not support the occupation of a territory awaiting to be decolonised. Those who truly defend democracy and the sovereignty of peoples do not support an invading, repressive and expansionist regime. Those who truly seek to maintain international peace and security do not fuel strategies of tension by blatantly supporting expansionism and the forcible annexation of the territories of others.
The Government of the Sahrawi Republic (SADR) affirms that, by taking this hostile and escalatory position, France has excluded herself from everything related to the international efforts to decolonise Western Sahara. This also puts France in the same place as the occupier and makes her unwelcome as far as the Sahrawi party is concerned, including her participation in the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).
The Government of the Sahrawi Republic (SADR) reaffirms that the Sahrawi people will thwart all the designs of the Moroccan occupying state and of those who stand with it, such as colonial France. The Sahrawi people equally are more determined than ever to continue their struggle and resistance by all legitimate means, including armed struggle, to defend their imprescriptible and non-negotiable rights to freedom and independence and the establishment of sovereignty over the entire Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).
Bir Lehlou, 26 July 2024
