Sahrawi Foreign Minister, Mohamed Salem Ould Salek, said yesterday, Thursday, that the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic will launch the procedure for obtaining a seat at the United Nations, calling on free countries to support the Sahrawi people in its struggle for independence.
In an interview conducted with the Russian agency “Sputnik”, Ould Salek indicated that the procedure of the application to join the United Nations as a new member which requires the approval of the Security Council and the approval of its five permanent members, will place them before their political, moral and historical responsibilities.
Ould Salek affirmed that if one of the countries with veto power refuses the adhesion of the SADR to the United Nations as a member with the same rights and duties, it will bear the responsibility for the continuation of the war before the entire world, noting that Western Sahara has been recognized since Spain’s withdrawal after a liberation war.
The Sahrawi diplomat recalled that, in 1975, Morocco stopped the decolonization process established by the United Nations, adding that the accession of the Sahrawi Arab Republic to the United Nations as a legitimate non-negotiable right is a result of Morocco’s obstruction of the suspended 30-year-old self-determination referendum.
Ould Salek believes that there is no other solution to the conflict than the one recommended by the African Union, which is the negotiation of a just and lasting peace between the SADR and Morocco, two member states of the African Union in accordance with the organization charter and the UN Security Council resolution adopted unanimously on April 29, 1991, providing for the organization of a referendum to determine the fate of the Sahrawi people.
The Sahrawi official cited Article 4 of the Constitutive Contract of the African Union related to the issue of respecting the borders inherited from colonialism, the peaceful settlement of conflicts, preventing the threat of resorting to the use of force, peaceful coexistence, and the right of member states to live in peace and security.
The Sahrawi official also pointed out that with regard to international law, Morocco’s presence in the Saharan regions has no legal status than an occupying force, explaining that the United Nations, the African Union, and the International Court of Justice do not recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara.
Ould Salek stressed that the attempt to confiscate the inalienable right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination and independence (…) is considered on the one hand as moving very quickly towards the wall, which could lead to a state of war and instability in a strategic region that is very sensitive to international peace and security due to its geographical location and on the other hand as stepping on international legality.
MINURSO’s mission lost all its credibility.
Sahrawi Minister recalled that the war between the two countries resumed after Morocco violated the ceasefire on November 13th , without being disturbed by the UN Security Council or the MINURSO mission, thinking that no one will be able to stop it.
The Sahrawi official affirmed, in this respect, that the Sahrawi people will never accept the return to the miserable experience of waiting in vain, adding that the Sahrawi people have given its word by accepting the peace agreement signed on September 6, 1991 under the auspices of the United Nations and the African Union, but it was betrayed and felt indignation and negligence.
Finally, Ould Salek considered that for the Sahrawis, the MINURSO mission had lost all its credibility as it came in a bid to organize a referendum on self-determination after 6 months and stayed 30 years without achieving anything to be mentioned, adding that the United Nations mission bears witness to the suffering of the Sahrawis who are exposed to the most severe forms of harassment by the colonial forces without intervening.
The Sahrawi official called on the free countries of the world to assist the SADR in defending its territorial integrity and sovereignty and to support the Sahrawi people who wish to reach modernity in order to contribute to the global human culture and civilization.
It’s worth recalling that Mr. Ould Salek had claimed, last Monday, the SADR’s full membership to the United Nations, reiterating the SADR’s commitment to supporting the efforts of the UN organization to accelerate the process of decolonization in Western Sahara.
