Sahrawi human rights organizations denounced the “accelerated deterioration” of human rights in the occupied part of Western Sahara, due to the escalation of repressive practices by Moroccan occupation forces in clear violation of all standards stipulated in international conventions.
The Sahrawi organizations demanded, on the occasion of World Human Rights Day coinciding with December 10 of each year, the establishment of an independent UN mechanism to monitor the human rights situation in the occupied territory and its decolonization.
In this regard, the Collective of Sahrawi Human Rights Defenders “CODESA” affirmed that “the ongoing military occupation of Western Sahara, along with its systematic repression, discrimination, confiscation of all fundamental rights, exploitation and plundering of the natural resources of Western Sahara, constitutes a serious and continuous violation of the international humanitarian law and international human rights law.”
It emphasized that “the continued denial of the Sahrawi people’s inalienable right to self-determination constitutes an explicit breach of the principles and charter of the United Nations, and the two international covenants and the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice of 1975 and all decisions of the European Court of Justice which affirmed that Western Sahara and Morocco are two separate and distinct territories and that any plundering of the resources of the Sahrawi people without their consent is considered illegitimate exploitation and contrary to international law.”
CODESA documented war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the occupation, including excessive use of force against peaceful gatherings, arbitrary detention, torture and mistreatment, unfair military trials, forced disappearances, and land and resource seizures.
It called for a genuine political process guaranteeing the Sahrawi people’s inalienable right to self-determination under UN principles and charter.
The group also stressed the need to allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights unrestricted access to Western Sahara and enable the International Committee of the Red Cross to carry out its legal mandate in order to protect Sahrawi civilians. It demanded the release of political prisoners, an end to all forms of discrimination, torture, abuse and unlawful detention, disclosure of the fate of those forcibly disappeared, families’ right to know the full truth and obtain justice, and a halt to natural resource exploitation.
The Association for Monitoring Wealth and Environmental Protection in Western Sahara condemned the “rapid deterioration” of human rights in Western Sahara amid ongoing serious and systematic violations by Moroccan occupation forces against Sahrawi civilians, in open defiance of international obligations and human rights law, underscoring the urgent need for international intervention. The association denounced Moroccan security forces’ “continued escalation of repression and harassment, particularly through systematic targeting of Sahrawi human rights defenders, journalists and peaceful activists, rather than respecting indigenous rights and ensuring their safety and dignity.”
