Algeria: No fait accompli no demographic change can affect the legal status of Western Sahara

New York (United Nations) 15 June 2021 (SPS)- The Permanent Representative of Algeria to the United Nations, Amb. Sofiane Moumni, declared in his country’s statement on Monday before the UN General Assembly Committee on Decolonisation that “No fait accompli, nor any attempt to change the demography” of Western Sahara can affect its legal status.

 

“In a word, no fait accompli, nor any attempts to change the demographic composition of the population of Western Sahara, and certainly no unilateral declaration or action can rewrite these facts or have a legal effect on a principle of Jus cogens.” he said.

 

He further urged “the Committee to fulfill its mandate and to use all the existing tools, including visiting mission, to ensure the protection of the political, economic, social and cultural rights of the people of Western Sahara and support the successful completion of the process of decolonization for the sake of the people of Western Sahara and for the wider benefit of our region.”

Following is the full text of the statement:

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75th Session of the General Assembly 

Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the implementation of the Declaration on granting of Independence to colonial countries and peoples 

Statement of H.E. Amb. Sofiane MIMOUNI Permanent Representative of Algeria to the United Nations 

On The issue of Western Sahara 

New York, 14 June 2021

 

Mrs. Chairperson, 

At the outset, I would like to congratulate you and the new members of the bureau for the renewed trust of the Committee in your leadership and to assure you of the active and productive contribution of my delegation. 

Since the last meeting of the C24 in 2019, we have commemorated several milestone events in the history of the emancipation of the people under colonial ruling starting from the 75th anniversary of the United Nations Charter, the 60th anniversary of the adoption of resolution 1514 (XV), and the proclamation of the 4th decade for the elimination of colonialism, and yet the records of the decolonization remain unchanged for the last 2 decades. 

This calls for a genuine political will among the members of the Committee and the broader membership of the United Nations to preserve and support the rights of the people of the non-self-governing territories, and to bring the process of decolonization of those territories to a successful conclusion. 

Mrs Chairperson,

The issue of Western Sahara has always been and remains an issue of decolonization. The landmark 1975 Advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, on the question concluded, at that time ‘‘the Court has not found legal ties of any nature that might affect the implementation of Resolution 1514 (XV) in the decolonization of Western Sahara and in particular of the principle of self-determination through the free and genuine expression of the will of the peoples of the territory’’. 

Furthermore, all the UN General Assembly and Security Council resolutions reaffirmed the need for the free exercise of the right of self-determination of the People of Western Sahara, to the very recent resolution adopted by the Security Council in October 2020 which maintained the MINURSO mandate with all its components, primarily the organization of a referendum of self-determination. 

In a word, no fait accompli, nor any attempts to change the demographic composition of the population of Western Sahara, and certainly no unilateral declaration or action can rewrite these facts or have a legal effect on a principle of Jus cogens. 

Mrs Chairperson, 

It is regrettable that in the 58 years that the General Assembly has been seized with the Question of Western Sahara, there has been little progress in the process of holding a free referendum to allow the people of this non-self-governing territory to exercise its right to self-determination. The same applies to the UN Security Council. For three decades, the MINURSO which was established with the primary mandate of the holding of a free and fair referendum on self-determination, has and is stilll struggling to fulfill this mandate. 

There have been too many hampered initiatives and missed opportunities to secure a just and definitive solution to the question of Western Sahara. To name a few: the UN-OAU settlement plan in 1991, the Houston negotiations in 1997, the Baker peace plan in 2003 and then Horst Kohler’s glimpse of hope that soon lapsed. The African Union has also contributed to peace efforts. The recent Summit of the Peace and Security Council held in March 2021 is a clear example of this commitment. Unfortunately, the unilateral procrastination and deliberately created obstacles still impede the UN and the AU from holding the referendum of Western Sahara. 

Worse still, this obstruction of the peace efforts has led to the deterioration of the situation on the ground. The cease fire has collapsed, the peace process sees no prospect with the position of Personal envoy vacant for more than two years, the Security Council is at stalemate and your esteemed committee is either unable or unwilling to fulfill its responsibility. 

Meanwhile, in a context of a pandemic, the Sahrawi people are still struggling and enduring grave violations of their human and political rights, deprived from their right to decide, while their natural resources are being systematically plundered. 

This situation calls for more efforts to break this deadlock and a greater engagement of the Committee on decolonization, as well as the General Assembly, and above all the Security Council in the implementation of their own resolutions. 

Mrs Chairperson, 

Let me recall that in its most recent resolution on Western Sahara, Resolution 2548 (2020), the Security Council reaffirmed its commitment to assist the parties to achieve a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution, based on compromise, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara. 

The resumption of direct substantial talks between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Frente Polisario is the obvious path to achieve a just, lasting solution. In this vein, we urge the Secretary-General to swiftly appoint a new personal envoy with the hope that it would contribute to relaunch the dialogue between the two parties. 

It is also critical for the General Assembly and the C24, to step up their efforts to fulfill its responsibility of promoting and upholding the exercise of the right to self-determination and to bring a substantive contribution in order to carry the peace process forward. We urge the Committee to fulfill its mandate and to use all the existing tools, including visiting mission, to ensure the protection of the political, economic, social and cultural rights of the people of Western Sahara and support the successful completion of the process of decolonization for the sake of the people of Western Sahara and for the wider benefit of our region. 

For its part, Algeria, in its capacity as a neighboring observer country which places the principles of self-determination and freedom at the core of its foreign policy, will continue to fulfill, in full transparency, its duties towards the refugee population in Tindouf and the People of Western Sahara, and will carry on its support to the efforts of the Secretary-General as well as those of C24 to bring the process of decolonization of Western Sahara to its long overdue conclusion. 

I wish to end my statement with a quote by Nelson Mandela who so eloquently reminded us of the essence of the mandate of this committee, "for to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others”. I thank you.” (SPS)

 

090/500/60 (SPS)