THE UN AND WESTERN SAHARA DISPUTE
From the General Assembly resolution 1514 up to
Now
BY: GAZOULIT TAOUFIQ; MA
After lengthy discussions in the sixty-third session of the special political and decolonization committee (fourth committee) of the UN general assembly, a draft resolution was submitted by the chairman, in order to be approved by members of the general assembly.
In this respect, the draft of resolution in question has recognized “all available options for self-determination of the territories are valid as long as they are in accordance with the freely expressed wishes of the people concerned and in conformity with the clearly defined principles contained in general assembly resolutions 1514(XV) of 14 December 1960, and 1541(XV) of 15 December 1960 and other resolutions of the general assembly». This particular paragraph is so meaningful that self-determination does not mean necessary independence, because the paragraph 6, resolution 1514 states that “any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purpose and principles of the character of the United Nations”.
The decolonization of Morocco
, which was progressively despoiled of territories that had always belonged to it by various Franco-Spanish treaties drawn up between 1886 and 1912, necessarily implied their return to national unity and national integrity in accordance with the terms of resolution 1514 quoted above.
It is worth noting that some neighbouring countries, in addition to those opposed to the unity of Morocco, continue to invoke the right to self-determination of the population of Western Sahara in an attempt to prevent Morocco’s national reunification, in this respect it is vital to examine the principle of the right of peoples to decide their own destiny, in practice and in international law
When referring to the United Nations resolution 1514 concerning the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, there exists certain confusion, as this resolution applies to non-autonomous countries and territories under UN mandate. In fact the UN recognize two different decolonization problems; that of territories which, at the time of colonization had no international juridical status to which the procedure providing for self-determination and independence applies, and other territories constituting an integral part of a state. This is clearly the case of Western Sahara; as the international court of justice in The Hague
expressly recognized that Western Sahara
was not a territory without a master, but one over which morocco exercised its sovereignty. It is also apparent in the resolution of the summit of African heads of states held in Cairo
in 1964, which declares: “portions of territory subtracted by occupying powers or transformed into autonomous bases for the benefit of the latter must return to the country that has attained independence”
Further more, it is the constant practice of the United Nations to apply the principle of the territorial integrity of states whenever it is a question of reconstituting a state divided by colonization or again when it is a question of deciding the case of a region which formed part of a state before its colonization, in short the principle of self-determination contains nothing to cause morocco concern , unless it is abused without taking into account the specific nature of Morocco’s decolonization .
Following the creation of the UN’s special committee on decolonization in 1963 Western Sahara was included on the list of non-self-governing territories; thereafter the question of Western Sahara
was, until 1969, regularly considered by the special committee in the UN general assembly in conjunction with the question of Sidi Ifni.
On 20 December 1966, UN general assembly resolution 2229 reaffirmed the right of the people of Sidi Ifni and the “Spanish Sahara
” to self-determination. It requested that the administrative powers immediately take the necessary steps to speed up the decolonization of Sidi Ifni and taking into account the aspirations of the indigenous population, decide with the Moroccan Government upon the means of transferring powers, in conformity with resolution 1514. The resolution also requested Spain, in conformity with the aspirations of the native population of the “Spanish Sahara” as it used to be called, to consult with the Moroccan and Mauritanian governments to organize a referendum to be held under the UN auspices and which would permit the native population on the territory freely to exercise its right to self-determination Spain was further requested:
- To furnish all facilities to a United Nation mission to help set up whatever measures were necessary to end the colonial situation in the territory.
- To abstain from any action whatsoever likely to retard the decolonization of the (
Spanish Sahara
) as it used to be called before.
The United Nations general assembly returned to these recommendations on 19 December 1967 (resolution 2354) and on 16 December 1969 (resolution 2591). The 1969 resolution no longer made allusion to Sidi Ifni as that problem had since been settled to Morocco
’s satisfaction.
The UN general assembly resolution 2711 of 11 January 1971 and resolution 2983 of 14 December 1972 once
again reiterated the previous recommendations, but Spain
made no response to the recommendations of the UN. For this reason, resolution 3162 taken on 14 December 1973 was couched in much firmer terms. The assembly reaffirmed its previous resolutions concerning the “so-called Spanish Sahara”’ There is no doubt that that the tone had changed: the “Spanish Sahara “of the earlier resolutions had become the “so called- Spanish Sahara” , and further on, the “Sahara
under Spanish administration” and even “under Spanish domination,”. “it declares that the persisting colonial situation in the territory comprised the stability and harmony in the north-west part of Africa, reaffirms the legitimacy of the colonial people’s struggle and expresses solidarity with the Saharan peoples under Spanish domination” and “it reiterates its request to the administrative power to consult with the Moroccan and Mauritanian governments and any other interested power.” (Resolution 3162 (XXVIII) question of Spanish Sahara
P 110, general assembly, official records, 28th Session, supplement N 30 (A/9030)
The latter constituted a strong appeal to those powers who might be more interested in the Phosphates and other national resources to be found in the area than in the future of the Sahraoui people, as the same resolution requested all states to stop helping to perpetuate the colonial situation within the territory by means of investment. At this point, and before the 29th session of he United Nations took place, Spain made a gesture in the direction of a referendum, but its attitude was far from that requested by the UN organization, Spain at the beginning refused ton admit UN Supervision of the referendum and secondly insisted that participation in be restricted to the electors of the Djemaa, who remained in the Sahara, this effectively prevented (those Sahraouis who had moved back to other towns on the south of Morocco such as Sidi Ifni and TanTan and even further down to Marrakech) from having a say in the future of their homeland. It is known in the modern history of Morocco that a big number of Sharaouis who have fought against the presence of the Spanish colonization of the Sahara, and made it clear to the Franco regime that Sahara was an integral part of Morocco, have been pushed to flee the Sahara region to other Moroccan towns particularly Sidi Ifni, and Tarfaya which are part of the Sahara region colonized by Spain…..Properly applied, the principle of national self-determination need cause Morocco no concern, improperly applied (and the sort of referendum the Spanish would have permitted would have been a thoroughly perverted application) the principle could have wounded Morocco as a nation .
It is worth noting in this connection that the UN general assembly has made it clear that complete independence is not the only way for a former colonial territory to obtain autonomy. Paragraph 6 of resolution 1514(XV) states:
“Any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the charter of the United Nations”. There is also the possibility of free association with an independent state, or integration with another state. This is supported by the findings of the international law commission:
“the association or integration with an independent state is a way of implementing the right of people to self –determination, exactly as in the creation of a sovereign and independent state, as is clearly stated in the declaration related to the principles of international law regarding friendly relations and cooperation between states in conformity with the United Nations charter”( 14 may -3 august 1979 , united nations general assembly document, supplement 10, A/34/10, p 76 , paragraph 24) ;
Looking closely to the resolutions made by the General assembly of the United Nations and particularly the decolonization committee, known as the fourth committee, from the sixties up to now, and long before the creation of the Polisario front, Morocco was always confronting the Spanish government in order to decolonize the Sahara, as it did for Tarfaya and Tan Tan decolonized in 1958, and Sidi Ifni decolonized in 1969,which are geographically speaking part of the Moroccan Sahara, called before “Spanish Sahara”, and now “ Western Sahara” ; this disputed area has been the heart of the Moroccan nation and the site of Moroccan resistance to colonialism.
There is no doubt that members of the UN, will vote for the “draft resolution” which is basically a continuation of the famous 1514 resolution, this vote that will take place in few days time is seen by international law makers and experts as confirmation to the basic principle of self-determination which in the case of western Sahara does not mean necessary independence, but national unity and territorial integrity, as it is stated in the paragraph 6, resolution 1514.
Sources :
Political site of Western Sahara
: www.corcas.com
Western Sahara site : www.sahara-online.net
Western Sahara culture .site : www.sahara-culture.com
Site of Western Sahara towns : www.sahara-villes.com
Site of economic development in Western Sahara
: www.sahara-developpement.com
