Western Sahara is a vast, arid region stretching along the Atlantic coast of the African continent between Morocco and Mauritania. Once a Spanish colony, it is now the site of a bitter dispute between Morocco, which claims sovereignty over the region, and the indigenous Saharawi people, led by the Polisario Front, who seek independence and self-governance. Though the conflict has been largely ongoing since the 1970s, it has once again gained international attention in recent years as major political players, such as the United States, Spain, and Germany have all become embroiled. The region is home to over 500,000 people and is currently split between the Moroccan-controlled West and the Polisario Front-controlled East, separated by a buffer strip of mines and fortifications. The conflict has created many thousands of refugees and is increasing tensions between key regional players. With the resumption of violence after a UN-mandated ceasefire, a resolution must be agreed upon to protect the wellbeing and future of the region and all those who dwell in it.
Western Sahara has had a long history of colonisation. From 1884 to the mid-1900s, Spain was the resident colonial power. The UN began campaigning for the decolonisation of Western Sahara in 1965, though these requests were ignored by Spain until the 1970s when political turmoil and violence in the area increased. In 1975, Morocco sent 350,000 settlers across the border in an event known as the Green March. Polisario Front (Frente Para la Liberación de Saguia Al Hamra y Rio de Oro), made up of indigenous Saharawi people, was established in 1973, in the hopes of achieving independence for Western Sahara. They first engaged in military action with Spanish forces, but then as Morocco sent troops across the border in 1975, and rapidly became the bigger aggressor in the region, the conflict changed. Spain withdrew from Western Sahara in 1976 as the conflict grew more intense, and though Mauritania had initially been involved, staking its own claim to the region, it also withdrew in 1979 and ceded all its claims to the territory to the newly self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), established by Polisario Front. This left Morocco and Polisario Front as the primary combatants seeking control of Western Sahara.
After the 1970s, the conflict between Polisario Front and Morocco only grew more bitter and entrenched. The SADR applied for membership in the African Union, and after it was accepted, Morocco suspended any involvement in protest. Despite various mediation attempts by the African Union, an agreement between both parties could not be reached. Only a joint process co-authored by the UN and the African Union in 1988 finally enabled a ceasefire to be brokered, to come into force in 1991. These “settlement proposals” agreed that a referendum would be arranged that would allow the people of Western Sahara to choose between independence or integration with Morocco. The UN established a mission for the referendum (MINURSO) and for a time, it seemed that progress was being made on the question of Western Sahara, with joint summits organised to facilitate cooperation and coordination between both sides. However since that point, despite over thirty years having passed, no referendum has been held, and despite countless talks, an agreement that has satisfied all the necessary parties has not been found. In late 2020, hostilities resumed and no new ceasefire has been agreed upon. Though the violence has been relatively subdued, the possibility of escalation is very real and thus a resolution must be reached, and soon.
The return to violence is but one symptom of the regression of the situation in Western Sahara. The post of UN Special Envoy to Western Sahara has remained empty since 2019, and no bilateral talks have been facilitated in its absence. Officially, Western Sahara is recognised as a “Non-Self-Governing Territory”, yet many countries have acted in breach of this status, with nations like Comoros and United Arab Emirates accepting Morocco’s invitation to establish consulates in Western Sahara. Most controversially, the United States under former President Donald Trump agreed to recognise “Moroccan sovereignty over the entire Western Saharan territory”, in exchange for the normalisation of relations between Morocco and Israel. This dealt a major blow to the SADR, as the United States was the first Western, and one of the most powerful international political players, to recognise Morocco’s claims, undermining the legitimacy of SADR’s desire for independence. When Germany criticised the United States for taking this stance, Morocco recalled its ambassador and accused Germany of “hostile acts”. Western Sahara should not be used as a political bargaining chip, as is being done by Morocco to gain the upper hand in political negotiations. It is immoral and undemocratic and should be decried by the United Nations, which has remained silent on recent developments. The UN must reengage with efforts to restore peace. By remaining silent, it has turned its back on Western Sahara.
In recent weeks, the invitation of SADR President Brahim Ghali to an international summit in Tunisia has caused political tensions between Morocco and Tunisia, with Morocco recalling its ambassador and refusing to attend the event, stating that this was “a grave and unprecedented act that deeply hurts the feelings of the Moroccan people”. Many experts feel that the issue of Western Sahara, and the aggressive stance that Morocco has taken on it, threatens to destabilise the North African region, as ties between Morocco and Algeria, and now Tunisia as well have been profoundly impacted by the question of Western Sahara’s sovereignty. Western Sahara and the fate of the region should be of grave concern to the international community, yet it appears the world is willing to ignore it. This feeling is felt most acutely sensed by the youth of the country, who have long grown disillusioned with the interminable peace process. Jacob Mundy and Hugh Lovatt conducted an analysis on behalf of the European Council and concluded that “receding prospects for a negotiated solution will convince the Western Sahara national liberation movement that diplomacy and international law have failed it, and that an intensification of armed confrontation with Morocco is the only way forward.”
It is imperative that such a scenario should not occur. The disputed nature of Western Sahara has cost lives, frayed relations and disrupted the international progress of peace. A new UN Special Envoy to Western Sahara must be appointed, and bilateral talks reinstated immediately to dissuade an increase in the recent violence. A referendum should be held to allow the people of Western Sahara to determine their own futures, and the region should no longer be used as an incentive or detractor in political negotiations. No longer should Western Sahara be ignored and forgotten, but afforded the rights every person and region is entitled to.
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