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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 17 Jun 1986

Vol. 368 No. 1

Adjournment Debate. - Plight of Saharan People.

I thank the Chair for affording me an opportunity to raise this matter. This is an historic occasion in so far as it is the first time that Parliament has had an opportunity to put on record the plight of the Saharan people. I take this opportunity to speak not alone on my own behalf but on behalf of Deputy Andrews and Senator Connor and also on behalf of the Saharan people. I was privileged to be on an all-party delegation which was invited to visit the Sahara two weeks ago and see at first hand the problems which exist. Following that detailed and exhaustive visit to the Sahara we came to the conclusion that these are the forgotten people of Africa. We hear a lot about the problems in the Middle East and about America versus Russia but we seldom hear or read about the problems of this very fine race who have been fighting for centuries for their self-determination and civil rights.

When we visited the Sahara we were met openly by the people there. We witnessed an excellent form of democratic election and democratic representation by the people. We visited many camps where on occasion we witnessed in the middle of the Sahara Desert 40,000, 50,000 and 60,000 people living under canvas with very little sanitation or water and in some cases with very limited food. Nevertheless, these very proud people of the Sahara were able to show the world what can be done against impossible odds. They have an excellent educational programme for young children and with very limited resources they operate excellent hospitals with trained nurses and doctors all of whom work for the system without pay and with very little, if any, reward other than the hope of making a contribution to self-determination. Any race of people who are that dedicated to their cause must be admired and supported.

The Chair will be aware of Resolution No. 104. It is supported by the vast majority of countries. It urges the parties to the conflict — the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front — to undertake direct negotiations with a view to bringing about a cease-fire to create the necessary conditions for a peaceful and just referendum for self-determination for the people of Western Sahara, a referendum without any administrative or military constraints under the auspices of the OAU and the UN and calls for the implementation of the cease-fire. The Chair will be aware of that resolution because as leader of the Irish delegation at the 74th Interparliamentary Union Conference in Ottawa in September 1985 he supported that same resolution put was incorporated in the resolution put before that conference. That was the resolution which called on the parties to the conflict, namely the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front:

...to undertake direct negotiations so as to arrive at a cease fire aimed at creating the necessary conditions for a peaceful and just referendum under the auspices of the OAU and the United Nations, with a view to the self-determination of Western Sahara and without any administrative or military constraint;

It also called:

...on all parliaments to support the efforts of the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity with a view to the implementation of the relevant resolutions and decisions on the question of Western Sahara.

I do not think there is any area in the world where the Interparliamentary Union are almost unanimous in their support of that resolution and are in support of self-determination for the people of the Sahara. Most countries support the resolution and in particular the OAU of which the Saharan people and the Polisario Front are members. The President is Vice President of that organisation. This demonstrates to the western world the support of the African people, with the exception of Morocco, for the cause of the Saharan people.

The problem in the Sahara is not unlike the problem in Ireland. For 800 years we suffered under foreign domination and struggled against it. The Saharan people have the same problem because they had to struggle against the French who abandoned them and handed the problem to the Spanish. They in turn abandoned them and handed them to Morocco. We have a problem similar to that of our friends in the Sahara Desert who are fighting against impossible odds. It is a problem which the Moroccans cannot and will not win.

The Moroccans have created the impression in the western world that this is a problem of Morocco versus Algeria, but that is not the case. The problem of the Saharan people is a problem of seeking self-determination against an aggressor. The aggressor is the Kingdom of Morocco who have tried to exploit the people of the Sahara as the French and Spanish did over a century.

Self-determination in my opinion and in the opinion of my colleagues who visited the area is more than justified. We could find no reason to justify the presence of the Moroccan Army in the Sahara Desert. The Sahara is by right the property and domain of the Sahraran people. If given the support of the EC, and the Western world, those people will build a nation which, in the opinion of the group who visited them, will be an example to those states who have fought for self determination on the African continent.

One might ask why is there a Moroccan presence in the Sahara. The answer is quite simple. The Sahara, like many other areas in Africa, is very rich in minerals. The Kingdom of Morocco has to support an army of 30,000 troops who have built a 1,500 kilometre wall across the Sahara desert. Those troops have mined that wall and are defending it with arms and ammunition supplied by many of our Western allies. Those arms are being used to deprive the people of the Sahara of their just rights. When thinking of that wall built across the Sahara to divide the people one cannot but think of the wall built across Northern Ireland, above my constituency of Louth, which divides the people of Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland.

My colleagues and I believe that Ireland should take the lead on this. Ireland, as a non-aligned country that is not a member of NATO and does not have any axe to grind with Morocco, has a right to take up the cause of those people. In fact, we should support the ordinary people of Morocco who are suffering because of the greed of the people who rule their land. Not only are we seeking human rights for the people of the Sahara but human rights for the people of Morocco. We spoke with and interviewed the prisoners of war captured by the Polisario Army and they did not know of Ireland or the UK. They never heard of the EC or America. We asked them what they were fighting for in the war and the answer was that they were involved for the money they got. Those young boys and young men with families were being paid £25 per week to fight in the war. They were anxious that the war should be brought to an end so that they could return to their homes in Morocco. They did not know what they were fighting for and they did not want to be in the Sahara.

A deserter told us that because his machinegun broke down while he was at the front he was fined eight months pay by his commanding officer. He dropped his machine gun, ran to join the Polisarios and is now living with the Saharan people. The case of those people has never been brought to the attention of the Irish people. With due respect to the Minister of State and the Government, the problem of the Saharan people has been a minor one in the eyes of the Department of Foreign Affairs and of successive Governments. It is easy for us to act as the Pontius Pilate and wash our hands of the problem. We may say that we support the resolution laid before the IPU conference but we are not doing anything about the problem.

In 1980 the Government of the day gave humanitarian aid to those people but that aid did not reach the people of the Sahara until 1983. How many people died in the desert in the meantime? It is fortunate that other countries got aid to those people much quicker than we did. It is not my intention tonight to plead for humanitarian aid but to call for human rights for the Saharan people. I am calling on the Government to fight for a people who have been treated in the same way as the Irish were treated. What can we do? We must take independent action at European level. We do not need to know what the French, the Belgians, the Dutch or the Germans are doing. We are free to act on our own and we have a right in world terms to act independently. Excuses will not be accepted.

Those who represent the Saharan people, the Polisario Front, were democratically elected but they have not the right to make their case because Heads of Government here, and throughout the EC, will not meet them and allow them make their case. However, we have diplomatic relations with Morocco and we allow them to make a false and misleading case. I make that statement on the basis of information that exists in the Department of Foreign Affairs and information that was obtained by EC delegations who visited the area. Irish people were party to a false and misleading report which was adopted by the EC. Having visited the area we are in a position to refute that information. The Minister should send officials of the Department to the area and make a judgment then. I am confident that if that happens those officials will come back holding the same views as Niall Andrews, Michael Bell, and John Connor. Those forgotten people have not had an opportunity to make their case to the EC. I am thankful that the people of the Sahara, through the wisdom of their leaders have seen the light and are inviting parliamentarians and journalists to the area. On the basis of advice given by our delegation they have sent a delegation to Ireland to make their case.

It is left to people like Deputy Andrews, Senator Connor and myself to make the case here for those people. I regret that we are keeping the Ceann Comhairle and the Minister of State in the House at this late hour but the cause of these people is worthwhile. I understand that 500,000 people live in the desert. They have not seen rain for 20 year. Agricultural production is nil and there is no sanitation. One does not see any nice semi-detached houses in the desert and most of those people live under canvas. Half of the people living in the desert are children. It is to the credit of those people that they have built schools out of mud. The children are being given a proper education because their leaders realise the importance of education. Those people can survive by good medical support. What has Ireland done for those people? We sent aid in 1980 but it took three years to get there.

I should like to thank the Chair for affording me the opportunity of placing on the record of the House, on behalf of Deputy Niall Andrews of Fianna Fáil, Senator John Connor of Fine Gael and myself, representing the Labour Party, the plight of the people of the Sahara.

Thanks be to God, the peoples of West Sahara, through the wisdom of their leaders, see the light. They are inviting journalists and parliamentarians there. On the basis of our advice they have come here to make their case. Elsewhere, they could not make their case for reasons which the Minister well knows. It falls on people like Senator Connor and Deputy Niall Andrews and others to make their case for them.

I am grateful to have the opportunity, even at this late hour, to speak on the subject raised by Deputy Bell. I know that his visit moved him deeply. Senator Connor was also deeply moved by what he saw. The origin of this conflict described by Deputy Bell is a dispute about the status of the territory west of the Sahara. For many years it has been the subject of dispute, most recently between Morocco and Algeria in the UN and other international fora.

West Sahara is a former colonial possession of Spain. In 1975, a UN visiting mission to the territory conceded that measures should be taken to enable all Saharans originating in that territory to decide their future in complete freedom, in an atmosphere of peace and security. In November 1975, Spain, Morocco and Mauritania agreed on a declaration of principle known as the Madrid Agreement, under which Spain transferred its authority to a temporary administration comprising a Spanish Governor General and two deputy governors, one to be nominated by Morocco and the other by Mauritania.

In February 1976, Spain formally terminated its presence in the territory. Following the withdrawal of Spanish troops, Moroccan troops moved into the northern and eastern parts of West Sahara and Mauritanian forces moved into the southern area. Since then, Algeria has rejected claims by any state to the territory. It is argued that West Sahara should become an independent state and Algeria has worked closely with the resistance movement in West Sahara, popularly known as the Polisario Front, towards that end.

In 1979, efforts by the Polisario Front and Algeria were successful in persuading Mauritania to abandon its claim. Morocco, though, has continued its presence and has not recognised either Polisario or the SADR. Polisario engaged in an effort to oust the Moroccans from West Sahara through a campaign of military resistance. A number of efforts have been made to encourage a peaceful solution of this tragic problem. In particular, the OAU have continued to play an active role and as a result of their deliberations in Nairobi in 1981 Morocco agreed to the principle that a referendum should be held to enable the people of West Sahara to exercise their right to self determination. The OAU have been assisted by and have worked in close co-operation with the Secretary General of the UN.

Approaches by Morocco and Algeria have been consistently presented by both States at a number of UN General Assembly sessions. Both States have sought the support of other Un member states from their different standpoints. It is against that background that I will explain Ireland's position in relation to this dispute.

First of all, we regard the dispute, in part at least, as involving two states with whom we have friendly relations and diplomatic ties. Therefore, our efforts have been directed at the achievement of a peaceful settlement of the conflict. We have not believed until now that the endorsement of the position of one or other of the parties to the dispute would serve the interests of a peaceful agreed settlement. We have joined with our EC partners and have been engaged in encouraging a consensus between Morocco and Algeria at the UN General Assembly, rather than lending our support to a tabling of competing resolutions. It is worth recording that in 1983, at the 38th Session of the UN General Assembly, a consensus resolution on West Sahara was adopted. In our view that helped to advance a solution. The practice has been for Ireland to abstain from competing resolutions.

Deputy Bell referred to the plight of refugees and the very difficult conditions in which people are living in West Sahara. We have to be concerned about the wellbeing of the Saharan people, many of whom are obliged to live in most difficult circumstances in Algerian camps while the dispute continues. We have strongly and consistently supported the implementation of the principle of self-determination in respect of the territory so that a permanent settlement can be found. We agree that this should be done by the holding of a referendum which would allow the people themselves to decide the status of their territory. We welcome the Moroccan agreement to such a referendum, but we note that Morocco refuses to enter into direct negotiations with the Polisario because they do not recognise that organisation as representatives of the Saharan people.

In those circumstances, we have supported recent efforts by the UN Secretary General, working in co-operation with the Secretary General of the OAU, to offer his good offices as an intermediary with a view to advancing an agreement. Therefore, we support strongly the principle of self-determination.

However, we do not regard ourselves as being in a position to recognise West Sahara as an independent State before the Saharan people declare themselves in a referendum. It is Ireland's practice to recognise states and not governments. It has not been our practice to give formal recognition to liberation movements or similar organisations and more particularly not to ascribe to them the characteristics and status of a state.

The UN Secretary General and the Secretary General of the OAU are continuing their efforts and talks with the Polisario Front and Morocco to secure a basis for agreement. We understand that the two secretary generals are reviewing developments to date and we support this important attempt to bring this tragic, bitterly divisive conflict to an end through mediation. We hope an opportunity will be found in the near future for the Saharan people to exercise fully their right to self determination.

The Government contribute to the general refugee programme of the UN High Commission for Refugees in Geneva. We have allocated some funds specifically for the relief of Saharan refugees in Algeria. Deputy Bell will know that in the past week I have had some contacts with others interested in this problem and I am considering the possibility of giving further assistance to alleviate the problems which those refugees are facing. I have been able to explore possible avenues which would allow us to assist. Pending a political settlement, that is the practical way for us to express our concern.

The Dáil adjourned at 11.30 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday, 18 June 1986.

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