SAHARA PRESS SERVICE

Vald Vertel (Austria), 03/08/04 (SPS) The President of the Republic of Austria, Haenz Fischer, received Friday a group of Saharawi children, in holidays' colonies in his country, during an encounter attended by Austrian Association of Friendship with Saharawi People (AAFSP), reported a close source to the Saharawi representation in Austria.

Mr. Fischer accorded special attention to the Saharawi children chased away from their country by the Moroccan military occupation for 29 years. The kids performed some Saharawi songs before of the President to salute him, it was indicated.

The encounter took place with the presence of the President of the AAFSP, Mrs. Karen Scheele, and the representative of our country in Austria, Mrs. Najat Hamdi.

Mrs. Scheele exposed to the President the conditions of life of these children and their families in the Saharawi refugees' camps, a situation that still persists because of the intransigence of Morocco and its refusal to conform to international legality.

On another hand, the Saharawi children were in the same day the honour guests to a dinner offered to them by the Mayoralty of Gross Fighart, with the presence of figures of the province.

The day after, the young Saharawi ambassadors also participated to a marathon organised by the Mayoralty of Haiden Reich Stein. They were invited to take part to the event by the Mayor, Carl Bishler, who offered them a honorific price on behalf of the citizens of his town.

In a letter he addressed to the President of the Republic, Mohamed Abdelaziz, the Austrian Head of State had expressed last June his preoccupation with "the political developments regarding Western Sahara", deploring "the serious difficulties Saharawi people are undergoing", due to the illegal occupation of its (Saharawi people) territory by Moroccan expansionist regime.

"I promise you to pursue efforts" in the search of a just solution to the conflict, "supporting any proposition that will guarantee a peaceful and fair solution to this case", had he underlined

On his side, the Austrian Parliament had adopted, last February the 25th, a resolution calling to the implementation of the Baker plan for the self-determination of the Saharawi People, conforming to the Security Council's resolution 1495 adopted on July 2003. (SPS)

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SPS
ALGERIA/UN/SADR/MOROCCO
Bouteflika: Any attempt to put the conflict of Western Sahara in a Moroccan-Algerian context is a pure delaying procedure

Algiers, 03/08/2004 (SPS) Algerian President, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, addressed a message to the UN's Secretary General, Kofi Annan, in which he clarifies his country's position on Western Sahara and on Algeria's relationships with Morocco, considering "as a pure delaying procedure" any attempt to put the problem of Western Sahara in an Algerian-Moroccan context.

Here is the complete text of the letter, publicised Tuesday by Algerian Press Agency (APS) and translated by SPS:

"Mr. Secretary General and dear friend:
Since the resignation of your Personal Envoy to Western Sahara, Mr. James Baker, a lot of initiatives, suggestions and propositions related to the question of Western Sahara and the promotion of the relationships between Morocco and Algeria, are pervasively read by some parties.

First of all, I would like to say that I am deeply sorry for the resignation of Mr. James Baker, who devoted himself to find a satisfying settlement to a problem which is ongoing since thirty years already. I regret this resignation, especially that Mr. Baker had succeeded in developing his solution to the degree of presenting suggestions that were unanimously approved by Security Council. I also feel sorry because the good will of the two parties to the conflict, Morocco and Polisario Front, would have made this solution a final settlement to the conflict.

The subject of my letter is to re-underline the Algerian position on the problem of Western Sahara and also on Algerian-Moroccan bilateral relationships. Algeria continues considering the question of Western Sahara as a decolonisation problem, already under UN's responsibility as such, and which should find solution through the exercise by Saharawi people of its right to self-determination. Algerian position, thus, is based on the international legality and reflects the commitment of Algeria as a member of the United Nations.

Since this conflict is opposing Saharawi people to the occupying power, Morocco, any settlement should necessarily agreed upon by the two parties. Thus, we will consider as a pure delaying procedure any attempt to put the conflict in a Moroccan-Algerian context, because Algeria can not and does not want to be substituted to Saharawi people in the determination of their future.

Concerning Algerian- Moroccan bilateral relationships, I can guarantee you again, first: our sincere will to develop them and enlarge them as possible, second: that we don not oppose preliminary condition to this development. Further, we consider that there is no reason that the question of Western Sahara interfere in our relations with Morocco since Algeria does not have a direct relation to this conflict. As I reaffirmed above, Algeria deals with this problem as any concerned member of the United Nations, worried about the application of the United Nations' Charter.
 
Having clarified the position of Algeria on these two points, which seems to be arising speculations, I would like you, Mr. Secretary General, to accept my best regards". (SPS)

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