STOP NATO: �NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------- ListBot Sponsor -------------------------- Have you visited eBayTM lately? The Worlds Marketplace where you can buy and sell practically anything keeps getting better. From consumer electronics to movies, find it all on eBay. What are you waiting for? Try eBay today. http://www.bcentral.com/listbot/ebay ---------------------------------------------------------------------- One question comes immediately to mind in relation to Morocco's occupation of the Western Sahara: * How does this conflict intersect with the conflict between Morocco's Arab-chauvinist government and it's majority Berber population? Of course, there are more specific questions, such as: * Is the population of Western Sahara mainly Arab or Berber or something else? * Are the settlers sent in by Morocco mainly Arab or Berber? * Do those who fight for Berber rights in Morocco actively oppose the government's annexation of Western Sahara? - Aaron P.S. There's been a lot of coverage recently of the Berbers in Algeria, who have been holding massive demonstrations in Algiers and other cities. But I have almost never seen any reference to those in Morocco, although they are a majority there and apparently suffer almost total repression of their language and culture. But apparently their protests have not been anything like those of their cousins in Algeria. As Lenni Brenner likes to say, 'The squeaky wheel gets the grease.' P.P.S. The article I'm responding to was originally posted by <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> on Thu, 12 Jul 2001 20:20:29 EDT. I have copied it from a web site and am reposting it with the paragraph breaks as in the original. http://www.middleeastwire.com/commentary/stories/20010712_6_meno.shtm This article can also be found at <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Sahara-update/message/235> The Other Settlers Jordan Times (Amman) By Ian Urbina Posted Thursday July 12, 2001 - 05:15:13 PM EDT Amman - With all eyes on Israel-Palestine, a similar conflict is heating up elsewhere in the Middle East and the US has recently taken the wrong side. Reversing years of US policy, former secretary of state James Baker III is currently pressuring the UN to recognise the Moroccan annexation of Western Sahara. This is a dangerous shift. Not simply does it reward aggression while exempting our ally from international law, it also undermines US claims to support democracy and self-determination across the globe. Since invading Western Sahara in 1975, Morocco has systematically expelled several hundred thousand natives, 160,000 of whom have spent 25 years living on aid in tents in vast desert refugee camps. Almost immediately, the UN declared the invasion illegal, calling for a referendum over future status. But Morocco opted for 10 years of warfare to impose its claims, justifying its occupation as part of a quasi-divine reunification of the once divided nation. At the same time, Morocco also began moving settlers into the area. In 1991, the UN finally brokered a ceasefire by promising the indigenous population the right to vote over their fate. These people are still waiting. Meanwhile, the settlers continue to flow in as Morocco tries to stack the deck by arguing that these new arrivals should vote in the referendum. Now, the US and France are pushing to drop the plebiscite entirely and it looks like the UN may cave under the pressure. For the time being, the issue has been tabled due to opposition from other countries within the UN Security Council. No one knows exactly how rich the contested territory is in phosphorus reserves, and the US prefers to have these reserves in the hands of its loyal ally Morocco. US-Moroccan ties have always been strong. While Secretary of state under Reagan, Baker was helped consistently by Hassan II, the previous Moroccan king. For example, in 1986 King Hassan invited Shimon Peres to a secret meeting in Morocco, breaking with Arab solidarity on the Palestinian front. He also remained silent when his radars picked up American planes on their way across the Mediterranean to attempt to assassinate Qadhafi in 1987. In the years before that, the old king always made Moroccan troops available to act as mercenaries for French policing actions in West and Central Africa. Some are still standing by international law on the issue. Senators Edward Kennedy, James Inhofe, Patty Murray, Bob Smith and John Kerry recently sent a letter of protest to Colin Powell which reaffirms their commitment to the original UN position that the people of the Western Sahara have a right to a fair and free referendum. Likewise, most of the members of the Organisation of African Unity have recognised the legitimacy of the indigenous population's claims to the Western Sahara. Supporting Morocco's invasion sends a dangerous message to world leaders seeking to expand. It also fosters internal instability as Morocco diverts billions of dollars from the needs of its population towards militarising its border and implanting settlers. The conflict has severely corroded regional relations as Morocco, Algeria and Mauritania remain on the verge of open warfare. By taking the side of an absolute monarchy, standing against human rights and against those who strive for a more democratic system, the US only further tarnishes its image in the Middle East. Whether the case is Iraq in Kuwait, Indonesia in East Timor or Israel in Palestine, international law must be upheld and expansionism opposed. No state, not even a US ally, has the right to annex and depopulate a territory. The writer, an editor at the Middle East Report, is based at the Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP), a Washington-DC think tank founded in 1971 for independent policy research on the Middle East. He contributed this article to The Jordan Times. � 2001 Jordan Times (Amman). This news item is distributed via Middle East News Online (MiddleEastWire.com). 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