SAHARA PRESSE SERVICE

Paris, 20/09/2005 (SS) The French Committee on Western Sahara expressed, on Tuesday, its "disagreement" with the maintaining by the Moroccan authorities of 37 Saharawi political prisoners under detention in the Carcel Negra (Black jail) in El Aaiun city (the occupied capital of SADR), in the local prison of Ait Melloul (Agadir- Morocco) and in Oukacha Prison (Casablanca-Morocco).

In a press release publicised Tuesday in Paris, reported by the Algerian Press Service, APS, the Committee underlined that these "persons, illegally arrested for having peacefully exercised or claimed for their right to expression and to self-determination. They were beaten, tortured, and remain denied the most fundamental right of receiving the visits of their relatives or lawyers".

Claiming for "the immediate release of all Saharawi political prisoners", the Committee considered that no "democratic" State would accept the Moroccan persistence in the violation of the most fundamental rights of the population of the non-self-governing territory.

It underlined, on another hand, that 4 Moroccan human rights organisation: the Moroccan Organisation for Human rights (OMDH), the Moroccan Association for Human rights (AMDH), the Forum Truth and Justice (FVJ) and the Moroccan Prisons, had criticised this situation in a letter they addressed to the Moroccan Minister for Justice last September the 11th, while a Moroccan political party, "the democratic path", has called its Government to "release Saharawi prisoners of opinion".

The Committee finally recalled that "Saharawi people’s right to self-determination and to independence is an inalienable right and must, like all other nations, have the opportunity to live in dignity and freedom on their own homeland". (SPS)

SPS
AMOROCCO/OCCUPIED TERRITORIES/POLITICAL PRRISONERS

Moroccan Minister for Justice resumes again to disinformation on the subject of Saharawi political prisoners

Rabat, 21/09/2005 (SPS) Moroccan Minister for Justice, Mr. Mohamed Bouzoubaā, pretended on Tuesday in an interview publicised by Moroccan newspaper "Aujourd'hui le Maroc", that Saharawi political prisoners are "not detainees of opinion nor political prisoners", knowing that he recognised last September the 13th in a dispatch publicised by Moroccan agency of propaganda, MAP, that their claims "are of a political nature".

After 42 days hunger strike that started last August the 8, Saharawi political prisoners are still maintained imprisoned in terrible conditions, as proved by the photos of the Carcel Negra in El Aaiun recently publicised and are still incarcerated without any judgment for the 3 month because the Moroccan justice was in vacation.

"Now that the judicial vacation are finished, the examining magistrate will re-open the file and consequently all the accused will be gathered again in El Aaiun", shamelessly declared Mr. Bouzoubaā,

Worst, he pretended that Saharawi political prisoners had always benefited of the most comfortable conditions of detention and that their rights were "respected".

The World Organisation against Torture (WOAT) had, in fact, asked last September the 16^th for "an impartial investigation on the circumstances of the ill-treatment and torture inflicted to the prisoners, so as to identify the persons responsible of these abuses and drive them before of an independent and impartial civil court to sentence them following the relevant procedures and law".

Mr. Bouzoubaā, goes deeper in his lies pretending that Mr. Ali Salem Tamek was transferred to Agadir "to his request" because he "wants to benefit from a regular medical control". The truth is that the Saharawi activist was abducted from his cell in the Black Jail in El Aaiun last August the 1st to be transported in the trunk of a car in inhuman conditions to the prison of Ait Melloul (Moroccoo).

The 4 Saharawi political detainees, imprisoned without judgment in the Oukacha Prison in Casablanca, the Minister said according to the Moroccan MAP, were transferred to this prison, which is some 1200 Km far from the occupied city of El Aaiun so as "to benefit of the visits of their families who are living in Casablanca".

3 of these prisoners, it should be recalled, mainly Noumria Brahim, Lidri El Houssein and Laarbi Massoud, live in El Aaiun and their families too.

"We reaffirm, anew, the continuity of the hunger strike and the serious situation of the hunger-strikers that may cause a tragedy because of the negative and inhuman handling by some Moroccan officials, especially the Moroccan Minister of Justice who does not stop spreading false information", indicated the text in response to a press release by the Minister denying the existence of Saharawi hunger-strikers.

Many organisations such as Amnesty international, the International Organisation Against Torture, European Parliamentarian, Congressmen and many political personalities expressed their preoccupation about the physical and psychological security and integrity of Saharawi political prisoners in hunger strike in Moroccan prisons and call to their immediate release, it should be recalled. (SPS)

060/090/ALG 210128 sept 05 SPS

SPS
OCCUPIED TERRITORIES/STATE OF SIEGE/SPAIN/DELEGATION

A delegation from Galicia denied entry to the occupied city of El Aaiun

El Aaiun (occupied territories), 21/09/2005 (SPS) An important political delegation from the autonomous Spanish region of Galicia was denied entry, Tuesday by Moroccan colonial authorities, to El Aaiun, the occupied capital of Western Sahara. Their plane was then directed to the airport of Casablanca where the delegation was forced to stay while their personal papers were confiscated for 10 hours, declared Mr. Ivan Puentes, Counsellor in the Spanish Socialist Party counsellor, to SPS.

"Even though we were unable to get into El Aaiun to see by ourselves the situation of the Saharawis who are submitted to all kinds of human rights violations, we succeeded, at least, in opening a little path through the security and media siege imposed on Western Sahara since its occupation", stressed Mr. Puentes in an exclusive statement to SPS from he airport of Casablanca, few minutes before the delegation was forced leave heading towards Madrid.

On his part, Mr. Diego Calvo, Parliamentarian of the Spanish Popular Party of Galicia (PPG) expressed his indignation about the manner by which the delegation was maintained for a whole night in a hall of the Casablanca airport, while all their papers were legal. He estimated, however, that "we participated, with this expedition, to raise the international and Spanish public opinion awareness on the impunity Moroccan authorities are enjoying submitting the Saharawi territories and its habitants to a systematic repression".

If the Moroccan authorities deny entry to El Aaiun to the delegation that would be another proof that they have something to hide", declared Polisario Front’s Representative in Galicia, Mrs. Fatma Mohamed Salem, in a press conference organised Monday by the members of the delegation few hours before their trip to El Aaiun.

Composed of 15 persons, the Galician delegation is constituted of 3 parliamentarians, 5 municipal counsellors of the different local and national political parties, as well as trade unionists and representatives of universities and cooperation, it was indicated.

A delegation composed of 3 Parliamentarian from the Canary Islands, who were planning to investigate on the situation of human rights and meet Saharawi human rights activists on the ground, were expulsed, last Wednesday, from the airport of El Aaiun like many other foreign delegations from the different Spanish autonomous regions and from Norway, it should be recalled. (SPS)

010/090/666 211135 sept 05 SPS

SPS
POLISARIO FRONT/UN/POLITICAL PRISONERS

Polisario Front demands from the UN to compel Morocco release political prisoners and account for the 'disappeareds'

New York, 21/09/2005 (SPS) Polisario Front's Representative to the United Nations, Ahmed Boukhari, called the President of the UN's Security Council, Mr. Lauro L. Baja, to compel Moroccan Government release all Saharawi political prisoners, in hunger strike since last August the 8, and to account for more than 500 'disappeareds' and 151 prisoners of war.

In a letter he addressed Monday to the President of the UN's Security Council, the Saharawi diplomat set the alarm again, drawing the attention to the seriousness of the states of health of all the Saharawi political prisoners in hunger strike, because of the Moroccan intransigence and because of the criminal indifference of the Moroccan officials, such as Moroccan Minister for Justice, Mohmed Bouzoubąa, who does not stop spreading lies about the prisoners.

Here is the full text of the letter, SPS received:

"AB/e/sc/1/9/05

His Excellency

Mr. Lauro L. Baja

President of the Security Council

United Nations

New York

New York, September 19, 2005

Upon instructions of my authorities, I am writing to your Excellency to draw your attention to the very serious health conditions of the 37 Saharawi political prisoners (list enclosed) who are currently detained in several Morocco prisons. The detainees started, on August 8, 2005, a hunger strike with a view to having their political status recognized by Moroccan authorities and, accordingly, their imprisonment conditions improved.

The UN Secretary General has been kept fully informed on their situation.

Morocco government is still rejecting the legitimate demands of the political detainees as well as the requests made by several human rights organizations to visit the prisoners. As a result of it, and given the inhumane conditions of Moroccan prisons, mainly in Western Sahara (see the pictures), the lives of many of them, like Mrs. Aminettu Haidar, Mr. Tammek, Mr. Lehsen Ezreiguinat and Mr. Noumria Brahim are in real danger.

On the grounds of international and humanitarian laws, Morocco must release all of them, and provide credible information on the whereabouts of the 151 Saharawi POW’s still missing and of the hundreds of Saharawi civilians who have disappeared from 1976 and brought by Moroccan forces to an unknown locations.

Furthermore, in the presents circumstances, and on the eve of the UNSG’s Personal Envoy first visit to the region, Morocco continuing violations of human rights in the Saharawi occupied territories, added to her well known obstruction to the United Nations efforts to peacefully resolve the conflict of Western Sahara, constitutes a serious setback for any hope of success in the peace process.

Indeed, the death of any of the Saharawi political detainees will be Morocco’s responsibility and, certainly, it would be a tragic event which would not facilitate the mission of the Personal Envoy of the Secretary General.

The Frente POLISARIO would like to kindly request the Security Council to take all necessary measures to make sure that Morocco will, first of all, release the group of the 37 political detainees and provide credible information on the whereabouts of those Saharawi who have disappeared and the POW’s still missing.

I would be grateful to your Excellency if you would have the content of this letter and its enclosed annexes brought to the attention of the Members of the Council

I avail myself of this opportunity to express to your Excellency the assurances of my highest considerations.

Ahmed Boukhari

Representative of the Frente POLISARIO." (SPS)

060/090/ALG 21092005 sept 05 SPS

SPS
ALGERIA/WESTERN SAHARA/UN

Bedjaoui: "The Baker Plan is the only pertinent framework to realise" the decolonisation of Western Sahara

New York, 21/09/2005 (SPS) Algerian Foreign Affairs Minister, M. Mohamed Bedjaoui, underlined that his country considers the Baker Plan as a "the only pertinent framework to realise" the decolonisation of Western Sahara, and fully supports the UN’s efforts in this respect, declared the Head of the Algerian diplomacy in his speech before of the 60^th session of the UN’s General Assembly held in New York.

"Algeria considers that the baker Plan is the only pertinent framework to realise the settlement of the conflict", which opposes Morocco to the Saharawi people, he said, reaffirming Algerian full support to the UN in its efforts for the settlement of one of "last processes of non completed decolonisation".

"The settlement of the conflict of Western Sahara, within the international conformity will have as a positive effect to decisively impulse the construction of the great Maghreb Arab", he stressed, recalling that conflict’s settlement is a major preoccupation for the African Union (AU), who has always supported international legality and Saharawi people’s right to self-determination.

According to Mr. Bedjaoui, AU’s efforts for the settlement of conflicts, "never have enough chances of success unless there is a real implication of the rich countries in the development of Africa", in particular through the NEPAD, who "is now a catalyser of change", he added. (SPS)

060/090/ALG 212345 sept 05 SPS

SPS
SWEDEN/OCCUPIED TERRITORIES/MOROCCO/POLITICAL PRISONERS

Swedish Parliament’s human Rights’ Committee concerned about human rights’ situation in Western Sahara

Stockholm, 21/09/2005 (SPS) The chairman of the Swedish Parliament’s Committee on Human Rights, Mrs. Veronica Palm, expressed her concern about Moroccan human rights violations in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, calling the Moroccan Government to respect Saharawi political detainees’ rights to fair judgment, and to decent treatment.

In a letter she sent last Thursday the 15^th September to Moroccan Minister of Interior, Mrs. Palm expressed deep concern about the "recent arrest and detention of six human rights defenders in Western Sahara in the context of politically charged protests in El Aaiun and several other cities in Morocco and Western Sahara".

She stressed on the case of the "long-standing human rights defenders" Mrs. Aminatou Haidar, and "other arrested five human rights activists", Ali Salem Tamek, Mohamed El Moutawakil, Lidri El Houssein, Brahim Noumria and Laarbi El Houssein, who have been "arrested, tortured and put on trial because of their reporting on recent human rights violations".

"There had been earlier reports that local human rights defenders and journalists had been assaulted, harassed or intimidated by officials, and in some cases briefly detained. The Moroccan authorities also prevented several international delegations, seeking to investigate what occurred during the unrest, from entering Western Sahara", she added.

In this respect, the Chairman of the Swedish Committee exhorted the Moroccan Government "to ensure that any officials found to have ordered, used or condoned torture are identified and promptly brought to justice", and to guarantee the Saharawi political detainees "the right to a fair trial, including by ensuring that no statements made under duress will be used to obtain convictions".

Parliamentarians from the different Swedish political parties and Representatives of the civil society stressed on the necessity of the quick decolonisation of Western Sahara and urged Morocco to release all Saharawi political prisoners on hunger strike since last August the 8, in a demonstration organised Wednesday in front of Moroccan embassy in Stockholm with the participation of representatives of the Swedish student organization, NGOs and journalists, reported a press release by Saharawi representation in the Scandinavian countries.

Many organisations such as Amnesty international, the International Organisation Against Torture, Moroccan human rights’ organizations, European Parliamentarians, Congressmen and many political parties and personalities expressed their preoccupation about the physical and psychological security and integrity of Saharawi political prisoners, in hunger strike in Moroccan prisons since last August the 8, and call to their immediate release, it should be recalled. (SPS)

060/090/ALG 212350 sept 05 SPS