French Court Dismisses Pro-Polisario Claim Over Morocco-EU Agriculture Deal

Not long ago, the Polisario and its supporters had suffered a setback at the hands of London’s High Court which rendered a judgement against them. Now, it is the turn of the Tarascon Court which handed a ruling condemning the Confédération paysanne, a French trade union contesting the lawfulness of the Morocco-EU agriculture agreement
In April 2014, the Confédération Paysanne initiated legal proceedings with the Tarascon Commercial Court against the “IDYL” – a corporation specializing in the marketing of fruit and vegetables from Morocco, including the Southern Provinces.
The legal action sought to prohibit the company from distributing these products and to order it to pay damages for alleged losses suffered by some parties.
The Court repudiated all claims made by the Confédération Paysanne and ruled in favor of the IDYL Company on grounds that the statute of limitations has expired.
During the trial, the IDYL succeeded in exposing the fact that the legal action was pushed by a non-representative minority of the organization, with no legal standing.
Beyond the procedural aspects, this minority’s action is a damning indictment of certain leaders at the Confédération Paysanne, who do not hesitate to bypass the organization’s rules and regulations and engage in political activism that is hostile to Morocco.
The Confédération Paysanne (to which activist José Bové belongs) has repeatedly demonstrated its hostility and dogmatic alignment with the Polisario’s narrative.
In this vein, the Confédération Paysanne was not seeking to assert any so-called rights by contesting the agriculture agreement, but simply to exploit, for pure opportunism, an artificial polemic with no substance.
Once again, this ruling confirms the legitimacy of the Kingdom’s actions in its southern provinces and the conformity of its development initiatives with international law.