CRM-MPL1 The Western Sahara in the light of the International law : Fifteen basic statements on the conflict of Western Sahara Carlos Ruiz Miguel, Universidad

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The Western Sahara in the light of the International law :

Fifteen basic statements on the conflict of Western Sahara

Carlos Ruiz Miguel, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, EspañaMoisés Ponce de León Iglesias, Université Rennes 2 – Haute Bretagne, France

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« Any legal analysis of the question of Western Sahara should take into account

several basic, objective, statements that are the key of any approach to the conflict

according to the International Law »


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« Any approach differing from these statements could be clearly qualified as illegal according to the Law of the United Nations »

CRM-MPL 5http://www.un.org/depts/Cartographic/map/profile/afrique.pdfOctober 2011

http://www.un.org/depts/Cartographic/map/profile/afrique.pdf

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http://www.un.org/depts/Cartographic/map/dpko/minurso.pdf

http://www.un.org/depts/Cartographic/map/dpko/minurso.pdf

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1884. Spain signs a Treaty of protectorate with certain Sahrawi tribes and begins its occupation of the territory

1965. The General Assembly of the UNO asks Spain to withdraw from Spanish Sahara, in the international context of the decolonization, and asserts the right to self-determination for the Sahrawi people

1973. Creation of the Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro (Front Polisario)

Small historical reminder

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1974. Spain announces its intention to withdraw and begin to organize a referendum of self-determination. Hassan II persuades the General Assembly to ask an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice about how to proceed with the decolonisation of the Territory

1975. Advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice reaffirming the application of resolution 1514 of the UN-GA in the decolonization of Western Sahara and the application of the principle of self-determination for the populations of the territory. (October 16th)

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1975. Green March launches the occupation of the Western Sahara by Morocco (November 6th)

1976.(February 26th) Withdrawal from Spain. Morocco and Mauritanian try to conquer the Territory

1976 Spain, Morocco and Mauritania sign the so-called “Madrid Agreements” where quality of Spain as “administering power” of the Western Sahara is illegally tansfered to an interim (as much until Feb 28th 1976) to a tripartite administration (Spain-Morocco-Mauritania)

1976. (February 27th). Creation of Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic ( RASD) by the Front Polisario

1978-1979. Cease fire and peace treaty with Mauritania. Annexation by Morocco of the territory occupied by Mauritania


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1981 - 1987. Construction by the Moroccan army of walls of 2700 km long which divide the Sahrawi territory

1984. OUA ( Organization of African Unity ) admits the SADR within as its 51st member

1991. Under the auspices of the OAU and the UNO, signature by the two parties (Morocco and Polisario Front) of the “Settlement Plan”, wich establishes a cease-fire and the holding of a referendum of self-determination in 1992. The Settlement Plan is approved by the Security Council (resolutions 658 & 690). Creation of the Misssion of the United Nations for the Referendum in the Western Sahara (MINURSO in the Spanish acronym)

1992. Boycott of the referendum by Morocco


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1The Western Sahara is a

« non-self governing territory »

and a

« colonial country »

A/RES/2072_1965A/RES/2625_1970…A/RES/66/86_2012


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2The conflict of Sahara Occidental is a

« question of decolonization »

A/RES/2072_1965A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/3458-A_1975A/RES/33-31_1978A/RES/34-37_1979A/RES/35-19_1980A/RES/39-40_1984A/RES/45-21_1990A/RES/64/101_2010A/RES/65/112_2011A/RES/66/86_2012


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2

A/RES/2072_1965


2

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2

A/RES/35-19_1980

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2

A/RES/35/19_1980

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2

A/RES/35/19_1980

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2

A/RES/45-21_1990

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3The United Nations recognizes

internationally the existence of the

« people of Western Sahara »

A/RES/2072_1965A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/3458-A_1975A/RES/3458-B_1975A/RES/33/31_1978A/RES/34/37_1979A/RES/35/19_1980A/RES/64/101_2010 A/RES/65/112_2011S/RES/1920_2010


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3

A/RES/2229_1966

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3

A/RES/3458_1975

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3

A/RES/66/86_2012

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3

S/RES/2044_2012

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4The ‘people of Western Sahara’

is composed by the

« indigenous people of the Territory »

A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/3458-A_1975A/RES/3458-B_1975S/2000/131, para. 6


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4

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4

A/RES/3458_A/1975

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4

S/2000/131

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4

S/2000/131

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4

S/2000/131

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5The ‘people of the Western Sahara’

has a « right to self-determination »

A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/3458-A_1975A/RES/3458-B_1975A/RES/33-31_1978A/RES/34-37_1979A/RES/35-19_1980A/RES/64/101_2010 A/RES/65/112_2011S/RES/1871_2009S/RES/1920_2010


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A/RES/2229_1966

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6The ‘right of self-determination’ of the

‘people of Western Sahara ’ is

« inalienable »

A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/64/101_2010 A/RES/65/112_2011A/RES/66/86_2012



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7The ‘inalienable right of self-determination’ of the ‘people of Western Sahara’ should be

exercised by a « referendum »

A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/3458-A_1975A/RES/3458-B_1975A/RES/33-31_1978A/RES/34-37_1979A/RES/35-19_1980A/RES/38-40_1983A/RES/65/112_2011S/RES/621_1988S/RES/658_1990S/RES/1871_2009S/RES/1920_2010S/RES/2044/2012



7

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8The referendum of self-determination should be

« free, democratic and impartial » « without any administrative or

military contraints »

A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/38-40_1983



8

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9The ’people of Western Sahara’ has a

« right to independence » Because never existed

« any tie of territorial sovereignity » Between Morocco and the Western Sahara

A/RES/2229_1966CIJ 1975A/RES/38-40_1983


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9

http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/61/6195.pdf

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9

ICJ Western Sahara, 1975

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9

ICJ Western Sahara, 1975, para. 105


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9 ICJ Western Sahara, 1975, para. 105

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Spain is the

« administering power » of the Western Sahara

A/RES/2072_1965A/RES/3458-A_1975A/RES/3458-B_1975A/66/65_2011A/67/71_2012S/2002/161, para. 6


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10

S/2002/161

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A/67/71

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A/67/71

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A/67/71

but… a State neither loses its status of administering power,

nor is released from the fulfilmente of its obligations

by simply opposing to it de facto…

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The presence of Morocco in the major part of Western Sahara is an

« occupation»

S/RES/380_1975A/RES/34-37_1979A/RES/35-19_1980


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11

S/RES/380_1975

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11

A/RES/34-37_1979

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11

A/RES/35-19_1980

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11

A/RES/35-19_1980

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The Frente Polisario is the

« representative of the people of Western Sahara »

A/RES/33-31_1978A/RES/34-37_1979A/RES/35-19_1980


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12

A/RES/33-31_1978

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A/RES/34-37_1979

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A/RES/34-37_1979

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A/RES/35-19_1980

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A/RES/35-19_1980

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The Frente Polisario and Morocco are the two

« parties to the conflict »

A/RES/38-40_1983A/RES/39-40_1984A/RES/45-21_1990S/RES/1495_2003A/RES/64/101_2010A/RES/65/112_2011


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A/RES/38-40_1983

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A/RES/39-40_1984

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A/RES/45-21_1990

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The ‘people of Western Sahara’ has

« legitimacy » ‘to fight on behalf of the right to self-determination

and independence of the people of Western Sahara’

A/RES/2625_1970A/RES/34-37_1979A/RES/35-19_1980


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14

A/RES/34-37_1979

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14

A/RES/2625_1970

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There is a

« responsability of the United Nations »

in the decolonization of the Western Sahara

A/RES/2229_1966A/RES/2983_1972A/RES/3162_1973A/RES3458-A_1975A/RES/64/101_2010A/RES/65/112_2011


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15

A/RES/2229_1966

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15

A/RES/2983_1972

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A/RES/3162_1973

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A/RES/3458-A_1975

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A/RES/65/112_2011

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…for, any proposed solution needs to be firmly grounded in international law

in order to achieve just and fair, legitimate and sustainable outcomes.

Karin Arts et Pedro Pinto Leite

(in International Law and the question of Western Sahara, Éd. IPJET, 2007 Le droit international et la question du Sahara occidental, Éd. IPJET, 2009)

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The history of the conflict is downright discouraging to anyone who believes

in the rule of law.

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Despite dozens of UN Security Council resolutions since 1975, all reaffirming the right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination, and the fact

that the UN’s Fourth Committee treats Western Sahara as a Moroccan colony, Morocco continues to put itself above the law and remains firmly in place,

and in charge, in

Western Sahara, Africa’s last colony.

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It is what lawyers call res ipsa loquitur (the thing speaks for itself),

which means that in certain crystal clear situations a simple recitation of the facts, without need of further

proof, is sufficient to presume guilt.

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We are all Saharawis now

Aujourd’hui, nous sommes tous des Sahraouis

Hoy todos somos saharauis

Frank Rudy Ambassadeur des États Unis

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Occupied but not conquered

Ocupados pero no conquistados

Occupés mais non conquis

CRM-MPL 103Hmad Hammad

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SOURCES- ‘The rigth to self-determination and the natural resources of the Western Sahara’ (inedit), Carlos Ruiz Miguel

- ‘International law and the question of Western Sahara, Éd. IPJET, 2007, Karin Arts et Pedro Pinto LeiteIPJET (International Platform of Jurist for East Timor)

- http://www.un.org/depts/Cartographic/map/profile/afrique.pdf- http://www.un.org/depts/Cartographic/map/dpko/minurso.pdf-http://un.org A/RES et S/RES -http://arso.org

Carlos Ruiz Miguel and Moisés Ponce de León Iglesias

The Western Sahara Symposium, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Mai 2012

Documents

CRM-MPL1 The Western Sahara in the light of the International law : Fifteen basic statements on the conflict of Western Sahara Carlos Ruiz Miguel, Universidad