Dakhla (Occupied Territories), 9 September 2023 (SPS) - The United Nations Secretary-General's Personal Envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, met with representatives of human rights associations on Thursday, who provided him with an assessment of the increasing Moroccan repression against Sahrawi civilians in the occupied cities. They affirmed the need to uphold international legality and allow the Sahrawi people to exercise their right to self-determination, freedom, and independence.
The Personal Envoy, Staffan de Mistura, arrived in the occupied city of Dakhla on Wednesday evening from the occupied city of El Aaiun, where a peaceful sit-in organized by Sahrawis was brutally suppressed by Moroccan occupation forces.
The President of the Sahrawi Organization Against Torture, Omar Salem El Mami, stated in a press release that he, along with representatives of other Sahrawi associations, met with Mr. de Mistura for over an hour on Thursday.
The meeting focused on the latest developments regarding the Sahrawi issue and the Sahrawi people's commitment to organizing a referendum for self-determination, he specified.
Regarding civil and political rights, the same source added, "The discussion touched upon restrictions on individual and collective freedoms, including freedom of expression, the right to demonstrate, the right to assemble, and the right to form associations."
The press release also mentioned "the arrest of dozens of Sahrawi citizens in the occupied city of Dakhla, the killing of activist and political prisoner Hasna El Ouali, the abduction of Habib Akrichi, and the Moroccan policy of repression."
In terms of economic and sociocultural rights, the Sahrawi associations addressed "the strategy pursued by the Moroccan occupier in the city through economic projects entrusted to Moroccan investors, countries, or foreign organizations in order to involve them in the political conflict, promote colonization, and erase the Sahrawi identity."
The United Nations Secretary-General's Personal Envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, arrived in the occupied city of El Aaiun on Monday, September 4th, for a visit, marking the first of its kind in the occupied territories since he assumed his position about two years ago. The purpose of the visit is to prepare a report to be submitted to the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council in October.
Last Tuesday, he met with human rights organizations and Sahrawi media outlets, who informed him about the blatant human rights violations committed by Morocco and expressed their commitment to the right to self-determination, freedom, and independence.
In this context, the representative of the Polisario Front in Switzerland and to the United Nations and international organizations in Geneva, Oubi Bouchraya Bachir, stated in a press statement that the observation made by the United Nations Secretary-General's Personal Envoy, Staffan de Mistura, regarding the repression of protesters by Morocco during his presence in the occupied El Aaiun, is a message that testifies to "the ongoing conflict in Western Sahara."
The Sahrawi people's demonstrations in occupied El Aaiun constitute "further undeniable evidence of the Sahrawi people's commitment to their right to freedom and independence and their willingness to sacrifice for their just cause," he concluded.
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