New York (United Nations), June 19, 2026 (SPS) – African and Asian countries reaffirmed their call for respect for the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination and independence during statements delivered before the substantive session of the United Nations Special Committee on the Situation with Regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples (Committee of 24), which began its work on Monday at UN Headquarters in New York.
The representative of Namibia stated that the Special Committee remains an essential part of the path toward achieving the right to self-determination for the peoples of the 17 remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories, including the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
He recalled that Western Sahara has been under what he described as an illegal occupation by the Kingdom of Morocco for more than 50 years and noted that, since November 1975, hundreds of thousands of Moroccans have been settled in the territory. He referred to the October 1975 advisory opinion that stated Morocco possessed no sovereign rights over Western Sahara.
The Namibian representative added that the question of Western Sahara remains a decolonization issue under the agenda of both the Special Committee and the Fourth Committee, in accordance with Resolution 1514, the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.
He called on the leadership and bureau of the Special Committee to intensify efforts to implement the Committee's mandate, including undertaking a visit to Western Sahara to assess the situation firsthand and submit a detailed report to the Committee.
For his part, the representative of Timor-Leste recalled that the territory of Western Sahara remains on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories and that its status is therefore unequivocally governed by the principles of decolonization. He emphasized that its people retain an inalienable and non-negotiable right to determine their political future.
He reaffirmed that the right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination, as recognized in the United Nations Charter and by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514, must remain the central and fundamental element of any political solution. He stressed that this principle cannot be diluted, restricted, or replaced and must be implemented through the free and genuine expression of the will of the Sahrawi people.
The representative of Iran also reiterated the United Nations' continuing responsibility toward the Sahrawi people, whose aspirations, he said, should guide all efforts aimed at determining their future political status in accordance with established UN principles and the integrity of a process based on international legitimacy.
In this regard, he emphasized the necessity of ensuring the effective participation of the people of Western Sahara in any UN-facilitated process and of clearly ascertaining their views in line with relevant resolutions, so that their future may be shaped through their free will and without influence from external political considerations.
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