On the sidelines of the 51st session of the Human Rights Council, the Geneva International Observatory for Peace, Democracy and Human Rights (IOPDHR-GENEVA) and the Swiss non-governmental organization in special consultative status with UN “Promotion of Economic and Social Development”(PDES-NGO), organized an international symposium, on September 22nd. The theme of this symposium, which brought together eminent lawyers and academics specializing in international security and human rights, was: “Violations of the right to life: the systematic nature of arbitrary executions committed by the polisario and the responsibility of the host country.”
Following this event, Aicha Duihi, President of the IOPDHR-GENEVA, revealed to Barlaman Today on Monday 26th of September, that “this issue, although it concerns a specific area, calls into question the international order due to the threat it poses to international peace and security”, adding that “it is a dangerous situation where the separatist role of polisario, who has recently taken up arms again, intersects with the terrorist role of armed groups in an area exposed to dangers and illegal operations.” The activist went on to recall that ‘the polisario and Algeria, the host country, are engaging in serious violations of the right to life through arbitrary, extrajudicial, or summary executions that are still ongoing”.
[bs-quote quote=”We must take seriously all these threats issued by the polisario, inciting violence and hate speech and the war propaganda, and spread thuggery and killings to the Kingdom’s southern regions. What happened in Gdeim Izik is but an example of executing polisario orders, who still issue hostile and inciting statements which leave us with an uncertain future.
” style=”default” align=”left” color=”” author_name=”Aicha Duihi ” author_job=”President of the IOPDHR-GENEVA” author_avatar=”” author_link=””][/bs-quote]
Other panelists expressed convergent points of view regarding the situation. Mr. Lorenzo Penas Roldán, a lawyer at the Bar of Murcia, a specialist in terrorism and international security, stressed that “the judicial system in force in the camps, which is hardly an independent justice, is devoid of the principle of separation of powers, and its organization resembles a non-judicial and non-institutional structure.”
Ms. Maghlaha Dlimi, director of Dakhla’s media library, who was a part of the group of children that the polisario had sent to Cuba, stated that “the polisario has tried to partially acknowledge these violations but has been unable to provide an exhaustive list of its victims, and its failure is due to the continuation of these crimes, that are similar to those committed by terrorist groups, which have cost the lives, not only of the sequestered in the camps but also of Spanish and Mauritanian citizens, disregarding the appeals of the international community.”
On the same wavelength, Mr. Naoufal Bouamri, lawyer and human rights activist, expressed his stance on the so-called sahrawi council for human rights that he says “hardly meets the standards of Paris.” The panelist shed light on the legal and political responsibility of Algeria, which according to international humanitarian law and international human rights law, is “a country of asylum, which obliges it to guarantee many rights for the residents of the camps, including the right to free movement that can not enjoy the sequestered in Tindouf.” Going even further, he stated that “Algeria has not been content with observing with contempt these violations, but started to commit heinous murders targeting young gold-diggers, smugglers or young people wanting to escape the sad reality of the camps of Tindouf. This requires the prosecution of the perpetrators of these crimes before the international justice system, in particular, the International Criminal Court.”
Sophie Michez, a lawyer at the Brussels Bar, dwelt on her experience as an observer during the trial of Gdeim Izik*, in 2017, which resulted in charges related to the formation of a gang, the murders of eleven individuals, for mutilating corpses and burning public property. She highlighted the instrumentalization by Algeria of the case of the common law detainees of Gdeim Izik
Mr. Chema Gil, Director of the International Security Observatory and expert on terrorism and security issues, mentioned the links between the polisario and the jihadist organizations. He went on to recall the murder by polisario of a hundred Canary Islands fishermen in the 70s and 80s, whose families have obtained recognition as victims of terrorism by the Government of Madrid. He stressed that “the international community can no longer sit on the sidelines and must solve this problem taking into account the threat that the polisario may pose to international security.” Mr. Chema Gil added that “Morocco faces, seriously, these threats in the framework of its cooperation with the international community”.
(*) 23 defendants were prosecuted during this trial. They were arrested following the death of 11 law enforcement officers at the events of dismantling the Gdeim Izik camp (a site close to Laayoune city).