Madrid, 14/11/2005 (SPS) More than 30.000 persons demonstrated, Saturday in Madrid, to demand the withdrawal of Morocco from Western Sahara and to demand from the Spanish Government to play an effective role within the international community so as to enable Saharawi people exercise their legitimate right to self-determination, according to press agencies.The demonstration, which started from the Atocha Place marching towards Plasa Mayor in he centre of the Madrid, counted with the participation of many Spanish political personalities, especially the Coordinator of the Izquierda unida (Unified Left), Gaspar Llamazares, and the Spanish Popular Party’s Secretary for Foreign Relations, Jorge Moragas, besides members of the Executive Committee of all Spanish political parties, including Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE- in power), representatives of trade unions, including the Secretary General of Cimisiones Obreras (one of the most important Spanish Trade Unions), José Maria Fidalgo.
Representatives of the Spanish and European civil society, NGOS, committees of support to the Saharawi cause and citizens also took part to the march that was widely covered by the Medias. "30 years of injustice and sufferings! 30 years are enough for the decolonisation of Western Sahara", "Justice for the Saharawi people", "Free Sahara", "Morocco guilty, Spain accountable", were some of the slogans chanted by the demonstrators during this march, which was organised on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Madrid’ Tripartite Accords through which Spain ceded the territory to Morocco and Mauritania. The participants, who were lifting pictures of Saharawi human rights activists (Ali Salem Tamek, Aminatou Haidar, Brahim Noumria an others), denounced human rights violations in the occupied territories that culminated lately by the assassination of the young Martyr Lembarki Hamdi under torture in El Aaiun. At the end of the demonstration the declaration of Madrid "for the decolonisation of Western Sahara" was read before the participants. The text, which was signed by more than 700.000 signatures of support, will be handed over to the Spanish Government this week, it was indicated."The Spanish State is historically and politically responsible of the colonisation the people of the Western Sahara is suffering, since Spain has occupied the territory and exploited its resources for more than a centaury", the text of the declaration underlines. It calls the Spanish Government to undertake "a determined action" so as the process of decolonisation that was interrupted in 1975 can be completed in a just way through the organisation of a self-determination referendum. It further called on Zapatero’s Government to demand from Morocco the respect of the UN’s Security Council’s resolutions, especially the resolution 1495, in which the Council endorsed the" Peace plan for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara”, most known as the Baker Plan.
Before that, Mr. José Taboada, President of the State Coordination of the Spanish Associations of solidarity with the Sahara (CEAS-Sahara), affirmed that it "is time to put an end to injustice and to the tragedy lived by the Saharawi people". "Saharawi people said: 30 years of repression is enough", he added referring to the uprising of Saharawi people in the occupied territories of Western Sahara.
"Spanish political powers are unanimously considering that the Sahara is a problem of the Spanish State. Spain must assume, within the international community, the leadership of the efforts aimed at setting justice for the Saharawi people", he underlined. The writer Mrs. Rosa Regas, who undertook lots of visits to the Saharawi refugee’s camps, declared she was "moved" by the number of participants, some 30.000 according to the organisers. (SPS)010/090/000 140940 nov 05 SPS
Representatives of the Spanish and European civil society, NGOS, committees of support to the Saharawi cause and citizens also took part to the march that was widely covered by the Medias. "30 years of injustice and sufferings! 30 years are enough for the decolonisation of Western Sahara", "Justice for the Saharawi people", "Free Sahara", "Morocco guilty, Spain accountable", were some of the slogans chanted by the demonstrators during this march, which was organised on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Madrid’ Tripartite Accords through which Spain ceded the territory to Morocco and Mauritania. The participants, who were lifting pictures of Saharawi human rights activists (Ali Salem Tamek, Aminatou Haidar, Brahim Noumria an others), denounced human rights violations in the occupied territories that culminated lately by the assassination of the young Martyr Lembarki Hamdi under torture in El Aaiun. At the end of the demonstration the declaration of Madrid "for the decolonisation of Western Sahara" was read before the participants. The text, which was signed by more than 700.000 signatures of support, will be handed over to the Spanish Government this week, it was indicated."The Spanish State is historically and politically responsible of the colonisation the people of the Western Sahara is suffering, since Spain has occupied the territory and exploited its resources for more than a centaury", the text of the declaration underlines. It calls the Spanish Government to undertake "a determined action" so as the process of decolonisation that was interrupted in 1975 can be completed in a just way through the organisation of a self-determination referendum. It further called on Zapatero’s Government to demand from Morocco the respect of the UN’s Security Council’s resolutions, especially the resolution 1495, in which the Council endorsed the" Peace plan for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara”, most known as the Baker Plan.
Before that, Mr. José Taboada, President of the State Coordination of the Spanish Associations of solidarity with the Sahara (CEAS-Sahara), affirmed that it "is time to put an end to injustice and to the tragedy lived by the Saharawi people". "Saharawi people said: 30 years of repression is enough", he added referring to the uprising of Saharawi people in the occupied territories of Western Sahara.
"Spanish political powers are unanimously considering that the Sahara is a problem of the Spanish State. Spain must assume, within the international community, the leadership of the efforts aimed at setting justice for the Saharawi people", he underlined. The writer Mrs. Rosa Regas, who undertook lots of visits to the Saharawi refugee’s camps, declared she was "moved" by the number of participants, some 30.000 according to the organisers. (SPS)010/090/000 140940 nov 05 SPS
Source: Sahara Press ervice
