US policy shift on Western Sahara
New African (London)
Jan 2005., Iss. 436
pg. 35

J A Mundy. .

When Richard Armitage, the American deputy secretary of state told
Al-Jazeera that Washington "supports the territorial integrity of
Morocco," his words might have seemed banal, but in the context of the
Western Sahara dispute, they signalled a perceptible change in US policy
towards the 29-year-old conflict in northwest Africa.

The whole time, the US government has claimed juridical neutrality on the
Western Sahara dispute. But Armitage's words appear to convey Washington's
de facto support for Moroccos claim of the territory. Since 1975, the
Moroccan government has been at odds with the Algerian-backed Polisario
Front which is fighting for independence for Western Sahara. While Morocco
controls most of the territory, the international community has
overwhelmingly sided with the people of Western Sahara. Until the
territory has a chance to choose independence or integration with Morocco,
it will remain Africa's last official colony.

When asked if he had any "hope" for a resolution to the "forgotten"
conflict, Armitage told Al-Jazeera that the US government had discussed
the issue with both the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, and the Algerian
president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Even though he was unequivocal about Washington's "support" for "the
territorial integrity of Morocco," Armitage was less clear about the
Western Saharans' right to self-determination. He said, "But we do
recognise that the people of Western Sahara have expectations about their
own future."

The Moroccan government has long claimed that Western Sahara is an issue
of Morocco's "territorial integrity". Shortly after attaining independence
from France, Moroccan nationalists launched a claim on the then Spanish
colony. While Moroccan Arabs and Berbers are quite distinct from the
ethnic Sahrawis of Western Sahara, Morocco claims the territory is part of
a "Greater Morocco" truncated by colonialism.

Morocco's late King Hassan II took these historical claims to the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 1975 where they were categorically
rejected. The Hague instead advised the Spanish administration to hold a
referendum so that the Western Saharans could decide their own future.

Rather than risk loosing the territory, King Hassan marched 350,000
Moroccan civilians into the territory in early November 1975. Following
the march, the then US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger, advised
President Ford: "[King] Hassan has pulled back in the Sahara. But if he
doesn't get it, he is finished. We should now work to ensure he gets it.
We would work it through the UN [to] ensure a favourable vote."
Daniel P. Moynihan, the US representative at the UN in 1975, wrote in his
memoirs about Western Sahara and East Timor: "The Department of State
desired that the UN proves utterly ineffective in whatever measures it
undertook. This task was given to me, and I carried it forward with no
inconsiderate success."

Following Spain's hasty withdrawal from Western Sahara, a war between
Polisario and Morocco raged until the early 1990s. While Polisario had the
Moroccan troops pinned down throughout the late 1970s, a huge influx of
aid from Washington (under President Ronald Regan) and Saudi Arabia turned
the tide in Morocco's favour.

The war came to an end in 1991, when the UN brokered a cease-fire and
promised a referendum for the Western Saharans. Morocco, however,
attempted to fix the vote by registering tens of thousands of its own
citizens for the plebiscite. Rather than confront Morocco's numerous
attempts to delay and warp the vote, the UN security Council, led by
France and the US, abandoned the nine-year referendum effort in 2000.

The UN then enlisted the former US secretary of state, James Baker, to
push a plan in 2001 that would have allowed Moroccan settlers in Western
Sahara to vote alongside the territory's indigenous inhabitants. Even
Morocco rejected the "Baker Plan". Given Morocco's obstinacy, Baker
resigned his position as the UN chief negotiator in June 2004.
Even though Morocco snubbed Baker - who is very close to the Bush
Administration - American aid has been on the rise. In 2004, Washington
signed a bilateral free trade agreement with Morocco and made that country
a "major non-NATO ally" of the US.

While increases in economic and military aid have also been proposed,
Washington has additionally arranged for Morocco to receive special funds
normally designated for countries much poorer. This has been done, of
course, in the name of the "War on Terror".


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Forwarded by:

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Norwegian Support Committee for Western Sahara
wsahara2@...

*** Referendum now! ***
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Sahara-update
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