The top member of the Colombia/Morocco friendship group within the Colombian Senate, German Alcides Blanco Alvarez, went to bat for the preservation and deepening of bilateral relations between the two countries, while simultaneously denouncing the current Bogota government’s position which lends an air of legitimacy to the “SADR” entity.
The Colombian Senate, which recently passed a motion in support of Morocco’s territorial integrity, “categorically” opposes the government’s decision to establish diplomatic relations with the polisario or “legitimize its presence” on Colombian territory, he said during a joint press conference with House of Advisors Speaker Naam Miyara on Monday.
On this occasion, he presented the Colombian Senate’s motion–which expressed unequivocal support for Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over its Sahara–and emphasized the categorical rejection by “the legitimate representatives of the Colombian people” of the current government’s “unwise decision” to establish relations with the “SADR” faction representing polisario interests.
The Colombian government’s decision to recognize “a separatist and terrorist group” is “a source of concern for the Colombian Senate and the Foreign Relations Committee,” he stated to MAP.
Blanco emphasized that the motion’s authors clearly oppose the present Colombian government’s links with the polisario.
He also stated that Colombian lawmakers are striving to protect and enhance connections between Morocco and Colombia, as the current president should have done, since his foreign policy “does not represent us.”
The Speaker of the House of Advisors, for his part, emphasized the urgency of passing this new motion, calling it a crucial legislative issue.
“The Colombian Senate’s decision is a clear expression of support for the Kingdom of Morocco’s legitimate right to its entire territory,” said the speaker of the upper chamber.