South Africa to receive Saharawi diplomatic credential

President Thabo Mbeki will today receive the diplomatic credential from the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic following the announcement in September that South Africa would extend full recognition to the Arab Republic and establish diplomatic relations.

The move by South Africa angered the Moroccan government, which responded by recalling their Pretoria-based ambassador. Morocco has occupied the Western Sahara since the Spanish withdrew from the territory in the mid-1970s. The Saharawi pro-independence movement the Polasario Front established an exiled government in the refugee camps of Western Algeria.

Occupied
More than 70 countries, mainly in Africa, Latin America and Asia have recognised the Saharawi Republic over the years. Since 1975 when the Spanish withdrew, the territory was occupied by Morocco and Mauritania. The Polisario Front however launched an armed struggle which resulted in Mauritania withdrawing from the territory. The Morrocans stayed on and took control over the area, with the Polisario Front fighting them.

Mohamed Ul Alek, the Western Sahara's minister of foreign affairs, says in 1991 the United Nations stepped in a brokered a ceasefire agreement and also outlined a settlement plan calling for a referendum. The UN also established the United Nations Mission for a Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) to monitor and implement the plan.

In 2001 James Barker, a UN special envoy, proposed a new "Framework Agreement," giving five years of autonomy to Sahara within Morocco, followed by a referendum. The Polisario Front initially objected to the plan but eventually agreed. However Morocco still rejected the plan.

Ul Alek says the Saharawi people have been living in harsh conditions in the desert and continue to face huge suffering on a daily basis. He believes that South Africa's decision to recognise the Saharawi Republic will boost their struggle for self-determination.

In October the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution extending the mandate of its mission in the territory until April. Last month the Australian senate adopted a motion calling its government to recognise the Saharawi republic, if Australia decides to follow South Africa's example they will become the first main Western country to do so.