Commenting on Christopher Ross’s briefing of the Security Council on November 28, a member of Polisario’s National Secretariat (said) it contained only two positive points as far as Polisario is concerned. The first is that it recognises, albeit implicitly, the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination; the second is that it admits that direct and indirect talks have reached a dead end. What is missing is the obvious: the human rights violations committed by the Moroccan authorities in the “occupied territories”. Ross has sketched out a way of restarting talks that is, from Polisario’s point of view, erroneous and inappropriate, insofar as he is arguing that re-launching the talks depends on improved relations between Algeria and Morocco, as do any subsequent chances of success. In other words, Ross is saying that only Morocco and Algeria can, by improving their bilateral relations, implement a solution to the Sahara conflict within the framework of these relations. That is Morocco’s position, says the National Secretariat member. Rabat has always held that the Sahara question is an artificial conflict created by Algeria to settle scores with Morocco. Now, if talks are at a dead end and the UN is incapable of forcing Morocco to organise a self-determination referendum, the situation becomes untenable and an explosion might become inevitable. Contrary to what some people might think, the tensions in the Sahel region are not an obstacle against reverting to armed struggle and might even be a facilitating factor, argues the National Secretariat leader, adding that if there were to be a resumption of armed struggle, neither Polisario nor any one else could prohibit or prevent a link-up between armed action in the Sahara and the armed action already going on in the Sahel.
Ambassador Edward M. Gabriel
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