Among the settlers: inside Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara
During the final years of Spanish colonial rule over Western Sahara, the Polisario Front embarked on a war of national liberation for the Saharawi people. A UN fact-finding mission to Western Sahara in 1975 found that independence was the overwhelmingly favourite option of the native Saharawi people, as opposed to continued Spanish rule or rule by another African country. In Madrid, while Francisco Franco was on his deathbed, the Franquista government signed an agreement with Morocco and Mauritania whereby the two would divide Western Sahara amongst themselves. The Polisario Front meanwhile declared independence for the ‘Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic’ and would continue to fight for Saharawi freedom against the two neighbouring states. Mauritania could not withstand the guerrilla campaign of the Polisario and eventually recognised Saharawi independence in 1979, however Morocco persevered and it was only until a UN-brokered ceasefire in 1991 did the war come to an end.
After 1991, Morocco was left in control of around three-quarters of Western Sahara while the Polisario Front retained the final quarter. It was to this Moroccan controlled area I travelled to. For an unassuming tourist there aren’t an abundance of clues to indicate the remnants of a conflict, but an early indication was the sheer number of military, police and auxiliary police checkpoints along the roads. The checkpoints usually consisted of a permanent hut or small building and a handful of personnel who would board the bus and as the only Westerner onboard they were usually quite inquisitive about my movements. Journalists are banned from Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara and the region itself has very little in terms of tourist attractions, perhaps making visiting that bit more suspicious.
The two places I visited, Dakhla and Laayoune were overwhelmingly populated by Moroccan settlers although with a Saharawi minority and a noticeable UN observer presence in Laayoune. Since 1991 Morocco has encouraged the relocation and settlement of people from Morocco itself to the occupied territory. Much like the situation with Israeli settlements in the West Bank, this is in breach of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. As of 2015, Moroccan settlers outnumber Saharawi in the Moroccan-occupied area by two to one making the process of decolonisation and independence more difficult to navigate. A huge amount of housing construction could also be seen indicating that Morocco plans to continue to expand its settler population. The Moroccan settlers themselves could perhaps also be compared to Israeli settlers in terms of their fervent patriotism. Moroccan flags were commonplace above buildings and outside cafés. Inside most of cafés, restaurants or hotels a portrait of the Moroccan King Mohammed VI was hung proudly on the wall, although this is also an occurrence in Morocco itself too it’s probably done more frequently in the occupied territory. A lot of murals could also be seen eulogising the 1975 Green March, a mass demonstration coordinated by the Moroccan government to force Spain to enter into negotiations over a transfer of sovereignty of the area from Spain to Morocco.
The UN had planned for an independence referendum to be held, its current mission in Western Sahara MINURSO was established in 1991 to oversee the referendum, almost 30 years later there is absolutely no sign of a vote taking place. This is largely due to the total intransigence of the Moroccans who must be happy with the current status quo on the ground, they control the vast majority of the territory including the entire coastline with the added benefits of access to offshore oilfields and some of the world’s best fishing grounds. Huge areas inland also contain Oil fields and Phosphate mines. There is a huge level of international complicity in these operations including one Irish company, San Leon Energy PLC. Ultimately the plundering of the Sahara’s natural resources makes the occupation worthwhile from Morocco’s point of view. The UN role has thus become redundant. Morocco resents the UN presence in Laayoune and takes an ‘observing the observers’ approach to them. The UN compound is surrounded by Moroccan forces who have strategically placed a pole with a Moroccan flag less than an inch away from the compound wall, to give the impression that they have control or sovereignty over the compound.
The Saharawi still living under Moroccan occupation live with having their freedom of speech suppressed and their movements monitored. Aside from the official security forces there is also a network of informants, making it all the more necessary to be careful about what you say and to whom. I was told about a clandestine Saharawi museum and while early indications were that I would get the chance to see it unfortunately as I see it, the paranoia and understandable suspicion caused by the nature of the Moroccan occupation prevented it. There are Saharawi areas of Laayoune although there would be very few indications given how as mentioned there is little freedom of expression, and the Saharawi flag itself is an illegal symbol. Trouble occasionally flares up on the streets, most recently over the summer when the Moroccans brutally attacked Saharawi protesters who were celebrating Algeria’s victory in the African Cup of Nations, killing one woman.
Most Saharawi now live across the border in Algeria in refugee camps, after they were attacked by the Moroccans with napalm and white phosphorous during the war. The sliver of land in Western Sahara controlled by the Polisario Front is not able to sustain a large population. The situation to say the least is desperate and there aren’t any bright prospects on the horizon. The conflict is a fringe political issue in the Basque Country and Catalunya because of the connection with Spanish imperialism, but in the rest of Europe it doesn’t even reach the fringe. This is something that needs to change because the more the crimes of the Moroccans can be exposed in Ireland and elsewhere, the more likely it is that any kind of pressure will be put on them internationally.
le Ciarán O’Meachair
Extra resources
Violence in July 2019 - https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/08/morocco-western-sahara-investigate-brutal-crackdown-on-sahrawi-protesters/
Oil exploration - https://www.wsrw.org/a243x3292
Focus on Irish company - https://www.wsrw.org/files/dated/2015-11-06/san_leon_energy.pdf
Natural resources - https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2019/11/20/the-geopolitics-of-natural-resources-of-western-sahara/
More History/Background - http://theconversation.com/morocco-and-western-sahara-a-decades-long-war-of-attrition-122084
Documentary - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smg97ib_yfM