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Solution to Western Sahara conflict lies in right of Sahrawi people to self-determination

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Strasbourg, 9 April 2022 (SPS) - The Left Group in the European Parliament has reaffirmed that the solution to the conflict in Western Sahara lies in the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination, calling on the head of the Spanish government to realign his position with the UN resolutions.
"Various UN resolutions have established the right to self-determination of the Sahrawi people. They are the only ones that can freely decide their future. It is high time that the international community protects and supports the effective exercise of this right without any external interference," indicated the political group on its website, following the visit of a delegation of the Intergroup for Western Sahara in the European Parliament, in the Sahrawi refugee camps.
In this regard, the parliamentary group said that the statements of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on the so-called Moroccan "autonomy" for Western Sahara are not acceptable. "It is up to the Sahrawi people alone to exercise its right to self-determination and to freely opt for any decision," he said.
"We urge the Spanish Prime Minister to take this into consideration and realign his position according to the UN resolutions on Western Sahara and the right of the Sahrawis to decide for themselves", the Left insisted, considering "essential to advocate respect for international law, in this particular conflict as well as in others".
In this sense, the Left expressed in its statement its solidarity with the Sahrawi people and its legitimate representative, the Polisario Front. "We reiterate our willingness to collaborate on the path of a just solution based on respect for the right to self-determination of the Sahrawi people and international law, in accordance with UN resolutions.
The parliamentary group denounced the illegal occupation by Morocco of Western Sahara for 47 years, and called for an end to this violation of international law by returning this territory to its rightful owners, the Sahrawi people, stressing that no country has the right to annex other territories by force.
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