Brussels, 4 November 2026 (SPS) – The European Parliament hosted solidarity and awareness-raising events on 3 and 4 November under the slogan “Free Sahara”, at the initiative of the European Parliament’s Friends of Western Sahara Group, with the participation of a Sahrawi delegation, European parliamentarians, human rights advocates, experts and cultural figures.
The events aim to highlight developments in the Western Sahara issue, expose human rights violations against the Sahrawi people in the occupied territories, and draw attention to the continued plundering of their natural resources, coinciding with the 51st anniversary of the 1975 Madrid Accords.
The first day featured a screening of the documentary film “Aminatou”, which chronicles the struggle of Sahrawi human rights activist Aminatou Haidar, particularly her hunger strike in 2009. The screening was followed by a discussion on the role of documentary filmmaking in exposing human rights violations and drawing international attention to the plight of Sahrawi political prisoners.
The programme continued on Wednesday with a political seminar addressing the Sahrawi people's struggle 51 years after the Madrid Accords. Representatives of the Polisario Front, experts and cultural figures took part in discussions on the political and legal dimensions of the Sahrawi cause and the role of art and culture in supporting the Sahrawi people's struggle.
The programme also includes the presentation of the report entitled “Occupation Tourism”, which examines how the Moroccan occupation exploits the tourism sector in the occupied territories to consolidate its fait accompli. The report also documents the involvement of foreign companies and institutions in economic activities that violate international law and relevant European court rulings.
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