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SPS Two Swedish Funds disinvest from Kerr-McGee because of its illegal activities in Western Sahara 01.12.05
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Chahid El Hafed, 01/12/20050(SPS) Swedish "Ohman Fund" decided last
Friday to disinvest from oil company, Kerr-McGee, because of the latter’s
illegal activities in Western Sahara, while Swedish largest pension Fund, "Seventh
AP Funds",
which administers approximately 57 billion Swedish kroner, will sell all its
shares in the American company starting from February 2006, for the same reason.
"Polisario Front is satisfied with the decision of disinvestment from Kerr-McGee
adopted by Swedish 'Ohman Fund's", as well as with the "seventh AP funds",
Swedish pension Funds, decision to sell its shares in Kerr-McGee starting from
next February, cause of the American oil company’s illegal activities in Western
Sahara, declared Mr. Mhamed Khadad, member of Polisario Front’s National
Secretariat Coordinator with the Minurso, to SPS.
These Funds, who received massive criticism before from Swedish civil society
because of the Funds investments in American company Kerr-McGee, took into
consideration ethical consultancy agencies that concluded, after deep study,
that the presence of this American company in Western Sahara violates
international conventions Sweden signed.
Swedish Press Agency, TT, indicated that consulted experts consider that
"Kerr-McGee exploration activities languishes the occupation in Western Sahara
and is a threat to the cease-fire signed in 1991".
"Kerr-McGee violated conventions and it is time to exclude it from our Funds"
declared Richard Grottheim, vice-Director of the "Seventh AP Funds", to TT.
Norwegian oil Fund, one of the most important world wide disinvested all its
shares, last June, from Kerr-McGee for ethical reasons and in accordance with
the international legality.
"Polisario Front calls shares owner in Kerr-McGee to do their best in order to
convince the company put an end to its contract with Morocco, which is illegally
occupies Western Sahara", Mr. Khadad underlined.
"They can not be indifferent in the face of an unacceptable violation of the
right an ethics. If Kerr-McGee persists in its obstinacy, they should disinvest
from this company", he said. (SPS)
010/090/100/TRD 011117 Dec 05 SPS
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SPS Canaries Islands' Government attached to UN’s resolutions to settle Western Sahara’s conflict
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Las Palmas (Canaries Islands- Spain), 01/12/2005 (SPS) The President of Canaries’ autonomous Government, Adan Martin Menis, expressed "the attachment of his Government to the UN’s resolutions regarding Western Sahara", indicated a close source to the Saharawi presidential delegation in a three days official visit in the Canaries Islands.
Mr. Martin Menis qualified the meeting with President, Mohamed Abdelaziz, he ties of friendship that link the Canaries and Saharawi peoples".
On his part, Mr. Abdelaziz stressed that his Government "does not oppose Canaries Island shaving good relations with Morocco" (…) "We understand that this relations must be developed".
He stressed, however, that "this relations must be undertaken only within the
internationally recognised boundaries of Morocco. If they touch the occupied
territories of Western Sahara that will be interpreted as a support to the
colonial fait accompli, and thus will be considered as a violation to the
international conventions regarding non-self-governing territories".
The President o the Republic also met with Canrian Parliament’s vice-President,
Alfredo Belda, accompanied with the spokespersons of all Spanish Parliamentarian
groups.
Mr. Belda emphasised "the traditional relations between the Canaries Islands and Western Sahara", recalling that the legislative chamber has always voted in favour of the Saharawi people’s right to self-determination".
He also expressed the concern of his Parliament vis-à-vis "Moroccan human rights
violations and individuals’ rights’ abuses in the occupied zones of the Western
Sahara".
Saharawi Head of the State also met with the President of the Chamber of Trade
of Tenerife, The President of the Tenerife Cabildo as well as the Canaries’
Socialist Party direction. (SPS)
010/090/100/TRD 011607 dec 05 SPS
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SPS Mr. Paulino Rivero qualifies as "ambiguous" Zapatero’s Government’s position on Western Sahara conflict
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Las Palmas (Canaries Islands- Spain), 01/12/2005 (SPS) The President of the Canaries Islands Coalition (Local Party in power), Paulino Rivero, estimated that the position of the Spanish Government regarding the Western Sahara conflict is "ambiguous", adding that his Party will ask the Spanish Government to "clarify its position", indicated a close source to the Saharawi presidential delegation in a three days official visit in the Canaries Islands.
Mr. Rivero, in his intervention during after his meeting with the President of the Republic, Mohamed Abdelaziz, Hailed the "courage of the Saharawi people who accepted the Baker Plan for the self-determination", estimating that by this initiative Polisario Front showed its will "to peacefully put an end to a long conflict, despite the advantages this plan gives to Morocco".
"This position honours you. We took, along with the President of SADR, the engagement to intensify the actions in favour of the Saharawi cause at the level of the Spanish Parliament in Madrid", he added.
Mr. Abdelaziz, on his part, thanked the Canaries Islands people "for their support to the Saharawi cause" and recalled that the Saharawi people’s struggle witnesses "a qualitative development, which will be dominant until the complete independence, despite the Moroccan repression and despite the accomplice silence of some bodies".
He further asked the Canaries’ Islands people and institutions to "denounce this inhumane situation Saharawi population is living in the Saharawi territories under Moroccan colonial occupation". (SPS)
010/090/100 011540 dec 05 SPS
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SPS The trials of Saharawi political prisoners postponed to next Tuesday
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El
Aaiun, (cupied territories) 01/12/2005 (SPS) The Moroccan colonial
administration postponed, for the second time in less than a week, the trials of
14 Saharawi human rights activists, in custody in the Carcel negra in El Aaiun
because they peacefully expressed their rejection of Moroccan colonialism.
Estimating that the delay for hours of the trials, aims at
"discourage the lawyers and international observers", who came to El Aaiun, the
defence
of the activists left the court after the President of the court refused to
present the activists to judgement, and started with trials of criminals during
the morning.
The 14 Saharawi political prisoners were brought before court later by groups,
chanting slogans calling for Saharawi people right to self-determination and
condemning Moroccan colonial occupation of Western Sahara.
The Saharawi human rights activists declared to their Moroccan judges that they
have no rights or legal mandate to judge them stressing that the court
represents a colonial occupation that is militarily controlling the territory.
The prisoners refused new lawyers the court proposed to designate; they affirmed
that their defence must be undertaken by the groups of lawyers in charge of
their cases since the beginning.
Saharawi citizens and families of the prisoners organised a peaceful
demonstration after the trial, it was indicated.
Here is the list of the political prisoners brought before the colonial court:
·
Mohamed el Moutawakil
·
Brahim Noumeiria
·
Lidri el Houssein
·
El Arbi Maassoud
·
Ely Salem Tamek
·
Emidan El Wali
·
Aminetou Haidar
·
Hmad Hamad
·
Icheteiwi El Mahjoub
·
Bella Sidi Mohamed
·
El Moussawi Sid'Ahmed
·
Lehouedi Mahmoud
·
Tehlil Mohamed
· Jinhawi Likhlifa. (SPS)
040/090/000/TRD 011625 Dec 05 SPS
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SPS A demonstration of support to the Saharawi political prisoners in two Spanish autonomous regions
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The Basque
Country, 01/12/2005 (SPS) More than two hundreds people organised
demonstrations of support to the Saharawi political prisoners in the three
Basque cities, Vitoria, Bilbao and San Sebastian, under the theme "30 years are
enough, Morocco is guilty, Spain is responsible", calling to the release of all
Saharawi political prisoners, reported Spanish Press Agency, EFE.
This demonstration took place in front of the Spanish Government’s institutions
in order to "denounce the current policy of the President of the Government Mr.
Zapatero, who does not demand the respect of human rights and the enforcement of
the UN’s resolutions on Western Sahara as conditions to the relations with
Morocco, and instead of this encourage the illegal occupation of the territory
by maintaining privileged political ad economic relations with Rabat, EFE
underlined.
The demonstration recalled that many rallies took place last November in many
Western Sahara’s cities and that the Moroccan repression, which deployed more
than 4.000 soldiers in El Aaiun, backed with helicopters, provoking hundreds
detainees and wounded.
It also recalled the judgement of the Saharawi political prisoners, Ali Salem
Tamek, Noumria, Moutawakil, Messoud, Lidri, Hammad and Aminetou Haidar . These
human rights activists were "put into custody because they demanded the respect
of human rights in Western Sahara and the exercise by the Saharawi people of
their right to self-determination", the same source reported.
The demonstrators paid a vibrant tribute to the young Martyr of the Intifada,
Lembarki Hamdi, who was killed under torture by Moroccan authorities last
October the 30th.
On another hand another demonstrations took place in Toledo, Castilla La Mancha,
to denounce "torture and human rights abuses in the occupied territories" of
Western Sahara.
This demonstration was organised by the Association of the friends of the
Saharawi people in Toledo, with the participation of representatives of all
Spanish political Parties. (SPS)
020/090/666/TRD 011730 Dec 05 SPS
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SAHARA
PRESS SERVICE