Western Sahara: The Lingering Conflict
01 September 2013
Is an independent Western Sahara a viable proposition? Anouar Boukhars has
his doubts. Given that the region remains economically dependent upon
Morocco, the best that the ethnic Sahrawis may be able to hope for is
greater political autonomy rather than outright independence.
By Anouar Boukhars for FRIDE
_____
The dispute over the Western Sahara has been one of the most complex
conflicts in recent times. After over 38 years of war and diplomacy, the
parties are no closer to reaching a mutually-satisfactory settlement.
The stand-off between Morocco and the Algerian-backed Popular Front for the
Liberation of Saguia al-Hamra and Rio de Oro (Polisario) – a Sahrawi
independence movement founded in 1973 and based in Algeria – has had
disastrous human, economic, and political consequences across North Africa
and beyond. From the onset of the war in 1975 until the 1991 ceasefire, the
fighting between Morocco and the Polisario also caused the displacement of
thousands of people, resulted in the death of thousands of fighters, and led
to the division of the territory. On the one side, a heavily-fortified
Moroccan zone, protected by defensive walls (called the “Berm”) built in the
mid-1980s and manned by 150,000 soldiers, constitutes 85 per cent of the
territory. The Polisario controls the remaining area.
Besides the high human and economic costs, the conflict has also negatively
impacted on trans-Saharan security. United Nations Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon recently warned about the vulnerability of the Sahrawis in the
Polisario-controlled refugee camps in southwest Algeria to instability and
radicalisation stemming from other parts of the region. This is the first
time that the UN chief has acknowledged what many experts have been
describing for years as a ‘ticking time bomb’.
Understanding the various dimensions of the Western Sahara conflict and the
political challenges that hinder its resolution is paramount to reaching a
solution.
Since its annexation of the Western Sahara in 1975, Morocco has used a mix
of threats and incentives to win the support, or at least the acquiescence,
of the indigenous population. Most great powers, including the United
States, wish that the territory remain Moroccan and support the country’s
autonomy plan. Western governments fear the prospect of a weak independent
state, of almost the size of Britain, in an area already afflicted by many
fragile or failing states. In 2006, the architect of the United Nations
Mission for the Referendum in the Western Sahara (
<
http://www.google.es/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=peace%20mission%20%2B%20minurso&sourc
e=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CCoQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.un.org%2Fen%2Fpeacekee
ping%2Fmissions%2Fminurso%2F&ei=aojkUf6VJ5KQ7AbYrIDIDw&usg=AFQjCNH79ju5oaWqZ
JYm9OZHXi9xRit9Yw> MINURSO) and the fifth Secretary-General of the United
Nations, Javier Perez de Cuellar, wrote in his memoirs that the only
realistic solution is for Western Sahara to be integrated as an autonomous
structure within Morocco. But despite Western support and Morocco’s
substantial investments, Rabat has struggled to win the hearts and minds of
the Sahrawis.
Interviews I conducted throughout June in the Western Sahara reveal that
what the locals really want is genuine self-governance, including better
access to and management of their natural resources. Morocco’s investments
(nearly 3 billion dollars just for critical basic infrastructure) have not
fostered sustainable development. The region is almost entirely dependent on
state welfare and social assistance. Direct aid programmes target 34,000
Sahrawis, with a budget of over $68 million. This represents half of the
national budget aid devoted to Morocco alone. The Moroccan state also
devotes $535 million annually to combat poverty in the Western Sahara
through direct and indirect aid. The main problem is not necessarily a lack
of resources but rather opacity, waste and inequitable distribution.
Also, since 2005, writes Spanish scholar Bernabe García López, the Polisario
has used reports about human rights violations in the Western Sahara to
garner support in international fora and bolster its case for independence.
The April 2013 failed attempt by the US to broaden the mandate of the
MINURSO to include human rights monitoring in the territory should serve as
a warning to Morocco to act quickly on its promises to improve its
management of the area and expedite the devolution of power.
Earlier this year, the Economic, Social and Environmental Council, an
independent advisory institution to the Moroccan government, released an
exhaustive report about the root causes of the political, social and
economic problems facing the Western Sahara. It is the first time that a
commission was allowed to investigate, interview and operate unhindered in
the area. The fact that it was made public also reveals a growing
realisation in government circles in Rabat that only openness and
transparency can help address the enormous regional socio-economic
challenges.
The same shift can be seen regarding human rights. The creation in 2011 of
the independent National Council for Human Rights (CNDH) and the recent
enhancement of its investigative powers is a first step in this regard. The
CNDH has three regional commissions in the Western Sahara that independently
monitor the human rights situation, investigate complaints, and issues
special reports.
Now it is vital that these efforts by the Council be broadened and deepened.
Also, confidence-building measure programmes with the police and those
devised to combat the prevalent culture of impunity of misconduct by the
security forces must be supported, as well as the regional commissions’
complaints system in charge of dealing with allegations of police abuse.
In interviews carried out in Rabat, Laayoune and Dakhla, some state
authorities and local elected officials admitted that more must be done to
protect freedom of speech. The realisation seems to finally have arrived
that suppressing opposing views will not help Morocco’s case. Only democracy
can.
_____
For additional reading on this topic please see:
<
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?lng=en&id=1
64495> War and Insurgency in the Western Sahara
<
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?lng=en&id=1
37479> The Western Saharan Autonomy Proposal and Political Reform in Morocco
<
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?lng=en&id=1
43171> Human Rights: An Obstacle to Peace in the Western Sahara?
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Received on Sun Sep 01 2013 - 15:51:35 EDT