Chahid El Hafed, 12/08/2006 (SPS) The African National Congress (ANC) and the POLISARIO Front urged the Moroccan Government to "withdraw all its occupying forces from the Saharawi territory and to respect the sovereignty of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic within its internationally recognized borders", according to a press release that concluded a two days official visit to the Saharawi Republic, undertaken by the ANC Secretary General, Kgalema Montlanthe.

The two movements expressed their concern about the situation in the occupied territories of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, "particularly the oppression to which the defenceless Saharawis are being subjected", regretting "that in the 21st century the objectionable phenomenon of colonialism is still underway in Africa where an African country is still colonizing another African country".

In is respect they condemned "the blind repressive practices deployed by the Moroccan occupying forces", asking for these practices "to cease immediately and for the prisoners of conscience to be released without delay and unconditionally".

They also called on the United Nations "to intervene urgently to protect the Saharawi civilians and to put all necessary measures in place to safeguard their fundamental human rights and to ensure free access to the occupied territories by independent observers and the media in order to witness and gain knowledge of the realities on the ground".

The two movements of liberation finally signed a plan of joint action aimed to "strengthening the bonds of cooperation and solidarity already existing between them and diversifying the scope of exchange in all areas of common interest", the communiqué concluded.

The ANC delegation arrived Friday morning in an official visit to the Saharawi Republic, and was received in the wilaya of Smara by the Saharawi Prime Minister, Abdelkader Taleb Oumar, accompanied by many members of the POLISARIO Front’s National Secretarial and members of the Saharawi Republic’s Government and was granted a popular reception by the refugees of the Wilaya of Smara. (SPS)

010/090/000/TRD 121107 Aug 06 SPS

The complete text:

The Joint Communiqué between the African National Congress and the POLISARIO Front

Following the visit of Comrade Kgalema Montlanthe, Secretary-General of the African National Congress, and the senior delegation that accompanied him, and considering the significant discussions held with a Saharawi senior delegation led by Mr. Mohamed Abdelaziz, Secretary-General of the POLISARIO Front, and in view of the content of the talks that revolved around the bilateral relations, the situation of the two peoples and the situation in Africa and in the world at large, the two movements declare the following:

•        They recall the first historic talks that they held in Dar es Salaam and Algiers in early seventies, which laid the foundations for the solid and fraternal relations between the two movements, a conspicuous landmark of which was the historic visit of the late President Oliver Tambo that contributed to further solidifying the bonds between our two brotherly peoples in their common struggle for freedom, and against colonialism and Apartheid in the northern and southern parts of Africa. They bow to the memory of those martyrs who sacrificed their lives for strengthening and making this privileged relations an asset to be preserved and cherished by both Saharawi and South African generations in the best interests of the African causes in general.

•        The POLISARIO Front would like to congratulate the ANC for the resounding victories and the success of the last elections that bears testimony to the unwavering confidence that the people of South Africa has placed in the ANC as a mass movement that had led them to freedom in the past and is leading them today to achieving more social and economic development, a decent life for all and an exemplarily modern and democratic system of government. The ANC past and present leadership of South Africa still commands great respect and admiration amid all African countries and the international community as a whole.

•        The ANC would like to salute the POLISARIO Front and its heroic struggle for self-determination and independence, and calls on the Kingdom of Morocco to withdraw all its occupying forces from the Saharawi territory and to respect the sovereignty of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic within its internationally recognized borders. Likewise, it expresses its regret that in the 21st century the objectionable phenomenon of colonialism is still underway in Africa where an African country is still colonizing another African country.

•        The two movements express their concern about the situation in the occupied territories of the Saharawi Republic particularly the oppression to which the defenceless Saharawis are being subjected. The two movements therefore condemn the blind repressive practices deployed by the Moroccan occupying forces, and call for those practices to cease immediately and for the prisoners of conscience to be released without delay and unconditionally. They call on the United Nations to intervene urgently to protect the Saharawi civilians and to put all necessary measures in place to safeguard their fundamental human rights and to ensure free access to the occupied territories by independent observers and the media in order to witness and gain knowledge of the realities on the ground.

•        The two movements applaud the leading role played by South Africa, under the leadership of President Thambo Mbeki, and its active engagement in all issues of peace and security in Africa. They stress that stability and peace are the prerequisites for achieving social, economic and political development as part of the second phase of the struggle waged by African countries for freedom and independence and for addressing the past injustices that have been inflicted on our peoples.

•        The two movements reaffirm their attachment to the great principles and the values of the African liberation movement consisting in the respect for peoples’ rights to self-determination and independence and for their sovereignty within their borders inherited from colonization, and especially their right to pursuing African unity and integration in peace and prosperity; they also reaffirm their attachment to the principles and ideals enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the African Union and in the NEPAD plan of action.   

•        The ANC and the POLISARIO Front express their deepest gratitude for the support and solidarity that all forces of freedom, progress and peace, in particular Algeria, has been giving to the struggles waged by African peoples for freedom and independence.

•        The two movements reaffirm their solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinian people for exercising their legitimate rights and establishing their independent state, and express their condemnation and regret about the recent developments in Lebanon. They also stress that peace and security in the Middle East will not be achieved without the scrupulous respect for the dictates of international legality, the rule of law, and the rigorous implementation of UN resolutions.

•        The POLISARIO Front would like to take this opportunity to express its most sincere gratitude for this visit of the Secretary General of ANC, and for the unwavering support and firm position that South Africa, under the leadership and President Thabo Mbeki have always given to the struggle of the people of the Saharawi Republic.

•        Finally, with a view to achieving the aforesaid objectives, the two movements have signed a plan of joint action that aims at strengthening the bonds of cooperation and solidarity already existing between them and diversifying the scope of exchange in all areas of common interest.