• "Algeria, which is a neighbouring country, is all the more proud to provide diplomatic, political and humanitarian support to the people of Western Sahara and its legitimate representative, the Polisario Front, recognized as such by the United Nations."
• "It is equally unacceptable, misleading and condemnable for the Embassy of Morocco to accuse Algeria of financing, harbouring, arming and supporting a "terrorist armed group", bearing in mind its credentials in fighting terrorism ."
Image: COURTSEY
The Embassy Algeria to Kenya has taken notice with astonishment of the "clarifications" published by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco in Kenya, on February 1, 2023, on the website The Star.
The clarifications were in regards to the "opinion article" entitled "People-people solidarities for liberation PanAfricanism must continue", by Dr Willy Mutunga, Kenya's former Chief Justice on January 21, 2023.
For a reason that cannot be explained otherwise than by an obsessional policy against Algeria and a desperate attempt to mislead and misinform the distinguished readers of "The Star" newspaper and the public, the Embassy of Morocco has in its response straight away started by attacking Algeria.
Algeria was not mentioned at any point in the opinion article of Mutunga.
The Embassy of Algeria to Kenya would therefore like to provide the following response and historical and facts-based reminders:
1. Stemming from its own glorious history of national liberation, Algeria has, since its independence, relentlessly and proudly supported freedom and national movements of national liberation in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Faithful to their own liberation struggle against colonization that it has successfully defeated after a war of liberation and the exercise of its right to self-determination, the Algerian people have elevated Algeria's stand "in solidarity with all the peoples who are fighting for their right to self-determination and against all racial discrimination" to a Constitutional principle (article 32 of the constitution).
2. Algeria which is famously known as "the Mecca of revolutionaries" is proud of its contribution in support of the liberation and independence of Belize, Timor Lest, Namibia, Mozambique, Capo Verde, Angola and others. And it remains today totally and unwaveringly committed to supporting the decolonization of Palestine and Western Sahara.
The latter being the last colony in Africa and is a non-self-governing territory and in fact, occupied by Morocco.
It is listed by the United Nations on the Agenda of the Decolonization Committee of the General Assembly, the General Assembly and the UN Security Council.
3. Indeed, since the '70s, the United Nations, through its plenary organ, the General Assembly, has repeatedly urged Morocco "to terminate its occupation of Western Sahara" A/RES/34/37.
On its part, the UN Security Council has since 1975, in resolution 377, clearly set the framework of the issue of Western Sahara as a decolonization matter by "reaffirming the terms of General Assembly Resolution 1514 of 14 December 1960 (on the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples) and other relevant UNGA resolutions on the territory" of Western Sahara.
4. Moreover, not later than September 2022, the African Court of Human and People's Rights has underlined in its judgment in case n°028/2018 that the continued occupation of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) by Morocco is incompatible with the right to self-determination of the people of SADR as enshrined in Article 20 of the Charter and constitutes a violation of this right.
5. Consequently, Algeria, which is a neighbouring country, is all the more proud to provide diplomatic, political and humanitarian support to the people of Western Sahara and its legitimate representative, the Polisario Front, recognized as such by the United Nations, as well as leadership of the SADR that is a founding member of the African Union sitting side by side with Morocco which has been admitted to the AU, in 2017, and which has ratified the AU constitutive Act through the Dahir (equivalent to a decree) n°1-17-02, dated 31/01/2017, that explicitly cites the SADR amongst the AU members, which amounts to its recognition.
Algeria is also the host of hundreds of thousands of Sahrawi refugees who, 40 years ago, had flown the Moroccan aggression.
6. In this connection, the Embassy of Algeria would like to recall that history of our continent and beyond has taught us that colonizing and occupying powers, in a desperate attempt to weaken international support garnered by the legitimate struggle of the people they occupy, endeavor to propagate fallacious and misleading idea about the national liberation movements of those people.
7. Morocco, as an occupying power, is not an exception to these attempts in the case of the people of Western Sahara and its legitimate representative as per the UN General Assembly Resolutions A/RES/34/37 and A/RES/35/19, amongst others, the Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro (Polisario Front).
8. It is, therefore, factually and legally incorrect and politically immoral and inacceptable for the Embassy of Morocco to label the Polisario Front as a "terrorist armed group" while they both sit at the table of negotiation under the United Nations Settlement plan.
It is equally unacceptable and misleading for the Embassy of Morocco to accuse Algeria of financing, harbouring, arming and supporting a "terrorist armed group", bearing in mind its credentials in fighting terrorism that has led the African Union to designate Algeria as the Champion in fighting terrorism in Africa.
Algeria and many other countries support the Sahrawi people and its legitimate representative, the Polisario Front, which is unquestionably a movement of national liberation.
9. The Embassy is all the more surprised by the inconsistencies and contradictions of the mission of Morocco when it attempts to mislead the readers of the Star on the parties to the conflict.
As clearly identified by several resolutions of the UN Security Council, including resolutions 621, 658, 690 and 1033, the parties to the Western Sahara conflict are the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front to which the Council have addressed its call through its landmark resolution 690 adopting the Settlement plan signed by both parties and establishing the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).
Algeria is undoubtedly not a party to the conflict. It is a neighbouring country and an observer to the peace process.