SPS SADR/SPAIN/VISIT End of the President of the
Republic's visit to Catalonia
29.01.05
Barcelona,
29/01/2005 (SPS) The President of the Republic, Mohamed
Abdelaziz, ended Friday a two days work visit to Catalonia (Spain),
where he had fruitful meetings with the political leaders of the
autonomous community before flying Saturday towards Abuja to take part
to the AU's Summit, which will take place in the 30 and 31 January in
the Nigerian Capital.
The President of the Republic, Mohamed Abdelaziz, was received Monday
at the seat of the Generalitat (official name of the Government in
Catalonia) by the President of the Catalonian Government, Mr. Pasqual
Maragall. The latter recalled " the great concern manifested by the
majority of the Catalonian and Spanish public opinion in favour of
Western Sahara and its people".
Mr. Maragall underlined that the cooperation between the two parties
"will considerably develop, especially in the fields of humanitarian
assistance and aid to the Saharawi refugees".
The Mayor of Barcelona, Mr. Joan Clos, who received the presidential
delegation at the City hall of Barcelona, recalled the permanent
solidarity and support of his city to the Saharawi people, especially
at the sanitary level. He reaffirmed the availability of his municipal
council to continue the cooperation and reiterating his support to a
just and definitive solution to the conflict in Western Sahara.
The Head of the State had also been the guest of honour to a
dinner-debate organised by the Catalonian businessmen with the presence
of representatives of the regional and Spanish press.
In the second day of his visit to Catalonia, the President of the
Republic met with the President of the Republican Left (Esquerra
Republicana- in Catalan) (ER), Mr. Carod Rovira, accompanied with his
collaborators, of whom Mr. Pillar Delunde, person in charge of external
relations of the Party.
During a press conference he jointly held with the President of the
Republic, Mohamed Abdelaziz, Mr. Carod affirmed that his Party would
continue, "reinforcing our solidarity at the level of Catalonia and
Europe" (…) "We will work and use our influence at the level of Madrid
so as Spain adopts an attitude of dignity towards the Saharawi people
like Portugal did with the people of East Timor", he put.
On another hand, the Head of the State met with a delegation of the
Catalonian Socialist Party (PSC), which was composed of Mrs. Maria
Luisa Ferse, person in charge for Cooperation, Mr. Pere Navarro, Mayor
of Terrassa, Mr. Juan Manuel Jaime, Congressman and Mr. Amor Del Alamo,
Coordinator of the Mayoralty supporting the Saharawi people.
"Neither indifference nor neutrality. Western Sahara is a part of the
history of Spain and the Spain of today has more than anytime before
the responsibility and the moral, ethical and democratic obligation to
defend the Saharawi people until they enjoy their legitimate rights to
self-determination and independence", added the Coordinator of the
Party .
The President of the Republic was also received with all the honours
due to a President of a State last January the 26th by the Socialist
Mayor of Sabadell city, Manuel Busto, and his counsellors.
Mr. Manuel Busto tackled the multiple forms of relations between his
city and the Polisario Front, stressing the fields of cooperation, the
exchange of visits, the caravan of solidarity and the summer vacations
for Saharawi children.
"Sabadell had always backed the fair causes of liberation such as the
one led by the Saharawi people for more than 30 years. We will continue
this way and we would do our best to help the Saharawi people until the
complete independence of their country", he put in a speech he
pronounced in front of NGOs that have cooperation projects in the
Saharawi refugees’ camps.
President Abdelaziz and the delegation accompanying him met with the
leaderships of the Party Initiative for A Green Catalonia (IC-V),
Unified Left (IU) and Alternative of Catalonia (AC).
The vice-president of the Party IC-V, Jordi Guillot, stressed on the
"full and unconditional solidarity" of his party with the Saharawi
people struggle for their national rights. He expressed "the
willingness" of his party to "strengthen and multiply the ties with the
Saharawi people and SADR" and work hard to push the Spanish Government
to "assume its responsibilities towards the Saharawi people and their
legitimate rights to self-determination and independence".
On his part the General Coordinator of two other political Parties (IU
and AC), the Parliament member, Jordi Morales, condemned "the Moroccan
policy of blockage to the international community efforts for peace".
He asserted the Saharawi President the support of his Party,
underlining that it will act for a better "implication of the Spanish
Government so as Western Sahara's decolonisation process could be
achieved conforming to the international legality, in particular the
Saharawi people right to freely decide over their future". (SPS)
SPS SADR/SPAIN/PARLIAMENT Closure of the days of study
jointly organised by the national
Parliament and its counterpart of Navarre
Aousserd (refugees camps), 29/01/05
(SPS) The first stage of the days
of study jointly organised by the Saharawi National Parliament and that
of Navarre (Spain) was closed Thursday, indicated a communiqué
publicised Friday by the Bureau of the Saharawi Parliament.
These days of study, which took place for a week, were concerned with
the role of the legislative authorities in democratic societies taking
as an example the Parliament of Navarre, which was presented by many of
its members from the different Spanish political Parties.
The lectures presented by the Spanish Parliament members opened rich
debates and allowed a fruitful exchange of experiences, declared a
member of the Saharawi Parliament to SPS.
In a second stage of this initiative some Saharawi Parliament members
would travel in the near future to the Parliament of Navarre so as to
animate conferences and debates there, and to exchange experiences
between the two legislative Bodies. (SPS)
SAHARA
PRESS SERVICE