MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Western Sahara

23.11.2010

to wind up the debate on statements by the Council and the Commission
pursuant to Rule 110(2) of the Rules of Procedure

Charles Tannock, Tomasz Piotr Poręba, Ryszard Antoni Legutko, Adam Bielan, Jacek Olgierd Kurski, Mirosław Piotrowski, Marek Henryk Migalski, Ryszard Czarnecki, Tadeusz Cymański on behalf of the ECR Group

See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0675/2010

B7‑0679/2010

European Parliament resolution on Western Sahara

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its resolutions on Western Sahara and in particular its resolution on 27 October 2005 and 14 December 2009,

- having regard to the resolutions of the UN Security Council on Western Sahara, in particular resolutions 1598 (2005) of 28 April 2005 and 1495 (2003), endorsed by the UN General Assembly on 11 October 2005, and resolution 1871 (2009),

- having regard to the latest UN Security Council resolution 1920 (2010) that extended the existing mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO),

- having regard to the Secretary-General's latest report to the Security Council on Western Sahara (14 April 2008),

- having regard the conclusions of the report of the EP ad hoc Delegation on March 2009, in particular the recommendations relating to the compliance and monitoring of human rights in Western Sahara,

- having regard to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and the Member States on the one part, and the Kingdom of Morocco on the other part, especially its Article 2,

- having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of the United Nations, signed by the Kingdom of Morocco,

- having regard to the Declaration of the UN General Assembly of 9th December 1998 on the right of individuals, groups and institutions to promote and protect universally recognised human rights and fundamental freedoms,

- having regard the Statement by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, on Western Sahara on 10 November 2010,

- having regard to Rule 110(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

 

A. whereas the negotiated ceasefire agreement signed in 1991 brought to an end 16 years of fighting between the Polisario Front and Morocco who annexed the territory illegally in 1976,

B. whereas the Western Sahara conflict has resulted in severe human rights abuses, displacement of thousands of Sahrawi civilians as well as violations of human rights and serious breaches of the Geneva convention,

C. whereas around 165,000 Saharawi still live in refugee camps in the Algerian desert and the rest of the population live under an unlawful occupation,

D. whereas several human rights defenders have been targeted, arrested, detained and interrogated for speaking out against the repression of Moroccan occupation,

E. whereas no state has recognized the sovereignty of Morocco over Western Sahara,

F. whereas on Sunday, 7 November 2010 the third round of the United Nations-backed informal talks on the future of Western Sahara started in New York,

G. whereas just hours before United Nations-brokered talks resumed in New York clashes erupted on the ground between Moroccan security forces and Saharawi protesters,

H. whereas on Monday 8th November Moroccan security forces violently entered into the Gdaim Izyk camp, employing disproportionate force,

I. whereas there are reports of numerous casualties, injuries and disappearances,

J. whereas the EU remains concerned by the conflict in Western Sahara and its regional consequences and implications, including human rights situation in the Western Sahara; and fully supports the efforts by the Secretary General of the United Nations and his Personal Envoy in order to find a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution which will allow the self-determination of the people of the Western Sahara as laid out it the resolutions of the United Nations,

K. whereas the situation in the camps in the Western Sahara and in Tindouf may develop into a real humanitarian tragedy with unpredictable consequences, and that those incidents once again highlight the urgent need to include a human rights monitoring component in the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO),

1.  Condemns the serious attacks and disproportionate use of force by the Moroccan authorities that took place in the Gdaim Izyk camp and the city of El Aaiun which led to many civilian casualties, and calls on all parties to remain calm and restrain from any further violence;

2.  Deeply regrets and is very concerned about the dead, injured and missing people that resulted after the violent attacks and expresses its solidarity with the families of the victims;

3.  Calls for an international independent investigation under the auspices of the UN into recent events in the Gdaim Izyk camp and the city of El Aaiun;

4. Supports the right to self determination of the Saharawi people as laid down in UN resolution;

5.  Regrets the attacks on the freedom of press and information that many European journalists suffered and demands the Kingdom of Morocco to permit free access and free movement in Western Sahara for the press, independent observers and humanitarian organisations;

6.  Condemns the detention and harassment of Saharawi human rights defenders in the, by Morocco controlled, Western Saharan territory and urges the UN Security Council to include the monitoring of the human rights situation in the mandate of MINURSO in order to identify the violations of human rights;

7.  Calls on all parties: Polisario, Algeria and Morocco to refrain from escalating tensions or resort to violence and to peaceably settle the territorial dispute by a referendum under international monitoring;

8.  Calls for the protection of the Sahrawi population, respect for their fundamental rights, including freedom of expression and freedom of movement, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international treaties and conventions on human rights;

9.  Calls on the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front, the neighbouring states and the European Union to cooperate fully with the United Nations with a view to completing the process of decolonisation of Western Sahara;

10.  Calls on the international community to take necessary steps to bring Morocco into line with international law;

11.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the UN Secretary General, the Secretary-General of the African Union, the EP Delegation for the Relations with the Maghreb Countries, as well as the Bureau of the Euro Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliament and Government of Spain, Algeria and Morocco, and the Polisario Front.