SAHARA PRESSE SERVICE

Chahid El Hafed, 07/06/2005 (SPS) Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Bernardino León Gros, is expected Tuesday in a visit to Polisario Front for a meeting with the President of the Republic, Mohamed Abdelaziz, and other members of the Saharawi political leadership, an official source announced.

This visit coincides with the tension that prevails on the occupied territories of Western Sahara characterised by "the fierce repression that stroke peaceful Saharawi demonstrators who claim for human rights respect, the release of Saharawi political prisoners and the organisation of a referendum", it was indicated.

This is the 3rd visit to Polisario Front Mr. Bernardino undertakes, of which the latest was in August 2004, 5 months after the accession to the Spanish Socialist Party to power, and during which the Spanish diplomat announced that "the only plan is the Baker Plan" to resolve Western Sahara’s and that his Government works on this basis..

The Spanish diplomat undertakes this visit in the region after a Spanish delegation composed of Spanish local officials, social organisations and journalist was turned away by Morocco, Sunday, from the airport of El Aaiun (Western Sahara). The delegation was expressly aiming to investigating on human rights situation in the territory after the repression undertaken by Moroccan colonial authorities against Saharawi population for the last three weeks, observers said.

The Spanish Head of diplomacy, Miguel Angel Moratinos, had expressed to his Moroccan counterpart, Mohamed Benaissa, "the preoccupation" of the Spanish public opinion about the expulsion of this delegation, underlined a press release of the Spanish MFA, reported by press agencies. (SPS)

010/090/100/TRD 061046 June 05 SPS

SPS
SADR/SPAIN/MOROCCO/INTIFADA
The Spanish Left denounces the "weakness" of the Government of Zapatero in the face of Morocco

Madrid, 07/06/2005 (SPS) The Coordinator of the Unified Left (IU- in Spanish), Gaspar Llamazares, denounced on Tuesday in a press conference in Madrid, "the failure" of Spanish foreign policy, which shows its "weakness" in the face of the Kingdom of Morocco, after the expulsion last Sunday from El Aaiun of a Spanish delegation composed of local officials, journalists and human rights defenders, who wanted to investigate on human rights’ situation in Western Sahara.

To Mr. Llamazares the fact that the Foreign Affairs Minister had negotiated with Morocco yesterday the return of the delegation proves that Spain recognises it as an administrative power of El Aaiun (Western Sahara), while "this is not true", he said.

He finally warned that the presence of his Party within the future Spanish Parliamentary delegation that is called to visit the Saharawi occupied territory will depend on the fact that Morocco would not interfere in "how many of us will make the trip and who we will meet with there". (SPS)

010/090/666/TRD 071556 June 05 SPS

SPS
SADR/SPAIN
The Spanish Popular Party demands from the Spanish Government to send a delegation from the Senate to express solidarity with Saharawi in exile

Madrid, 07/06/2005 (SPS) The Spokesperson of the Spanish Popular Party (PP) in the Senate, Pío García-Escudero, claimed from the Government of Zapatero to facilitate the visit of a Parliamentary delegation to the Saharawi refugees camps to "to express the support and solidarity of the Spanish Senate with the Saharawi people", conforming to the motion the Senate adopted last September.

The motion, it should be recalled, called on the Spanish Executive to support the enforcement of the Baker Plan for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara within the framework of the United Nations "without transferring the negotiations to other bilateral or regional levels".

The text put forward the historical responsibility of the Spanish State in the ''the decolonisation process'' of Western Sahara, warning against the negatives repercussions that may result from the lack of engagement of Spain to resolve the conflict.

On the humanitarian level, the motion had called to a ''substantial increase'' of the humanitarian aid to the Saharawi refugees and to a development of technical cooperation through "all available (Spanish-Ed) governmental and non-governmental public bodies of cooperation." (SPS)
010/090/666/TRD 071719 June 05 SPS

SPS
SADR/SPAIN/ARAGON
The Mayoralty of Saragossa calls to the enforcement of the Baker Plan in Western Sahara

Aragon, 07/06/2005 (SPS) The Mayoralty of Saragossa recently adopted, with the unanimity of its members, a motion on the support of the enforcement of the Baker Plan in Western Sahara and to the self-determination for Saharawi people through a free and democratic referendum under the auspices of the UN.

Recalling Saharawi people’s hard conditions of life in exile, the motion called on all institutions of the autonomous province of Aragon to "increase the humanitarian aid and cooperation for the development to the Saharawi refugee camps".

The motion had recalled before that "the Spanish State has got specific responsibilities in the current political process for having colonised and occupied Western Sahara form more than a centaury", estimating that no Spanish democratic government can stand that abandoning the territory can put an end to "the Spanish responsibility as the colonising power to Western Sahara". (SPS)

010/090/666/TRD 071650 June 05 SPS