Western Sahara Independence Day (February 27)

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the declaration of independence of Western Sahara on February 27, the Western Sahara Network in Germany calls on the German government to do more to support the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination. Western Sahara has been occupied by Morocco since 1975. The Western Sahara Network includes the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), Emma Lehbib for the Sahrawi diaspora in Germany, the European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and Human Rights in the World (EJDM), Freedom for Western Sahara e.V., and the Action Group Solidarity World (ASW). They commemorate the anti-colonial resistance of the Sahrawi people and the promise of self-determination that has not yet been fulfilled.

“The occupation, which violates international law, has been going on for five decades. So far, the international community has failed to enable a referendum. That is a damning indictment,” says Laura Mahler, STP advisor for Sub-Saharan Africa. On February 27, 1976, the Sahrawi liberation movement Frente Polisario proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) and declared its independence. A few days later, it established a government in exile in Algeria, where a significant part of the Sahrawi population had fled.

“In order to achieve a final solution that is acceptable to both sides and guarantees the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination, it is urgently necessary to organize a referendum as a democratic solution for the decolonization of Western Sahara,” explains Mohamed El Mamun Ahmed, representative of the Polisario Front in Germany. “The legitimate struggle of the Sahrawi people for freedom, sovereignty, and independence cannot be replaced by artificial compromises aimed at legitimizing the continued occupation,” adds Thomas Schmidt of the EJDM.

“The consequences of the occupation are serious: systematic human rights violations, the exploitation of natural resources, and an entire generation growing up in exile or under occupation,” says Mahler. “Instead of enabling progress, UN resolutions and international politics are maintaining the status quo and thus cementing the occupation. A political solution that complies with international law is finally needed.”

The organizations therefore call on the German federal government to:

• to strongly advocate for a democratic solution in accordance with international law through a free and fair referendum under the auspices of the United Nations;
• to reject any recognition of Morocco's claim to sovereignty over Western Sahara, any unilateral division of the territory, or any support for the so-called autonomy plan without the consent of the Frente Polisario as the legitimate representative of the Sahrawi people under international law;
• to advocate for an expansion of the MINURSO mandate to include monitoring of human rights compliance in the occupied territories;
• Ensure the implementation of the 2024 ruling of the European Court of Justice, particularly with regard to the economic activities of German companies in Morocco and the import of goods from the occupied territories;
• Publicly condemn the ongoing human rights violations in the occupied territories and demand the release of political prisoners;
• actively advocate for adequate humanitarian aid to the Sahrawi refugee camps in the Algerian desert.

Since the arbitrary partition of Western Sahara in 1975 and the withdrawal of the colonial power Spain without formally completing decolonization, neither the United Nations nor the International Court of Justice recognize Morocco's claim to Western Sahara. Under international law, the Sahrawi people are entitled to a referendum. However, this has been denied them for decades.

In the 1976 Declaration of Independence, the Frente Polisario proclaimed “on the basis of the free will of the Sahrawi people” the establishment of “a free, independent, and sovereign state, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, governed by a national democratic system.” At the same time, the Sahrawi people declared their determination “to defend their independence and territorial integrity and to exercise control over their resources and natural wealth.”

You can contact Laura Mahler at l.mahler@gfbv.de or 03051 / 695825-3.

You can contact Mohamed El Mamun Ahmed at germany@fpolisario.de.

You can reach Emma Lehbib at saharauischediaspora@gmail.com.

You can reach Thomas Schmidt at thomas.schmidt@eldh.eu.

You can reach the ASW at marek.burmeister@aswnet.de or 030 25940806.

This press release was translated from German to English using AI. If you come across errors or ambiguities, please contact us at presse@gfbv.de.