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The Independence Intifada (intifada is Arabic for "uprising") is a Sahrawi name for the disturbances, demonstrations and riots that broke out in May 2005 in the Moroccan-held parts of Western Sahara. This event has also been called "The El-Aaiun Intifada". The Moroccan government denies that the uprisings amount to an "intifada", and term them simply disturbances or troubles. It has accused the Front Polisario of instigating unrest.
- Note: This article is about Western Sahara. For the demonstrations referred to as the "Intifada of Independence" in Lebanon, see "Cedar Revolution".
Background
- main article, History of Western Sahara.
Western Sahara, formerly Spanish Sahara, was forcibly annexed by Morocco in 1975, as Spain pulled out. A war with the indigenous Polisario Front, representing the indigenous Sahrawi population, and backed by Algeria, ensued. In 1991 a cease-fire was agreed upon, on the condition of a referendum on self-determination (including the options of independence as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic or integration as Morocco's Southern Provinces). This has since been the Polisario's main demand, but no referendum has taken place. The cease-fire holds, but tension remains high. The area is divided between Morocco and Polisario forces by the Moroccan Wall and patrolled by the UN's Minurso mission.
Sahrawi political activity in the Moroccan-controlled parts of Western Sahara remains severely repressed, and police crackdowns and forced disappeareances has been a frequent response to civil protest. The political climate gradually relaxed in the 1990s, after the cease-fire, and following considerable liberalization in Morocco proper, and this resulted in more frequent protests, with the Sahrawi sides declaring minor "intifadas" in 1999 and 2000, as dozens of demonstrators were rounded up and arrested during unrest in the region.
Demonstrations and arrests
Demonstrations began in May 2005 in El Aaiún, after relatives protesting the transfer of a Sahrawi prisoner to Morocco were dipersed by police, and escalated into major demonstrations within a matter of days. It then spread to other Sahrawi cities such as Dakhla and Smara, and also into Sahrawi-populated parts of southern Morocco, notably the towns of Assa and Tan-Tan. Sahrawi students rioted in the universities of Rabat and Marrakesh. Police and army units were brought in from Morocco to quell the uprising, and although demonstrations subsided, several protests a month are still held in November 2005. On October 30, 2005, a first casualty was reported: 31-year old Lembarki Hamdi died after what human rights organizations claimed was police brutality, although the Moroccan government attributed his death to an accident. Another Sahrawi, Lekhlifa Abba Cheikh, was killed by police in Tan-Tan in early December, but it is not clear that this was related to political protest.
Hundreds of Sahrawi protestors have been arrested, and about thirty demonstrators and well-known Sahrawi human rights-activists have been imprisoned after summary trials. Among them are the former political prisoner Ali Salem Tamek (who did not parttake in any demonstrations, but was arrested when returning from abroad), human rights-activist Mohamed Elmoutaoikil, and Aminatou Haidar, a former disappeared. There is an international campaign for her release which has been signed by 178 members of the European Parliament, and she has been nominated as a candidate for the Sakharov Prize. A 50-day hunger strike of all the arrested Sahrawis put the health of several at risk, and the action was aborted.
On December 14, 2005, 14 pro-independence Sahrawis and human-rights activists, including the activists mentioned above and most of the remaining Sahrawi political leadership, were sentenced to between 6 months and 3 years in prison by an El-Aaiún court, on charges of disturbing public order, membership of illegal associations, incitement to unrest and damaging public property . Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch had expressed serious concern over the trials, pointing to reports of torture and previous abuse of some of the prisoners (see here and here).
International Reactions
Several international human rights-organizations have shown interest in alleged Moroccan abuse of Sahrawi demonstrators. Amnesty International has demanded an investigation into reports of torture of prisoners. It calls for fair trials, and the release of political prisoners. This has been echoed by Human Rights Watch, but specialized human rights groups such as Reporters Without Borders and others have also issued condemnations of specific actions by the Moroccan state.
Morocco has attempted to limit access to the territory. Investigative missions from European countries have been denied access to the territory, including several high-ranking parliamentary delegations and foreign ambassadors to Morocco. Several foreign journalists, mainly from European countries, but also al-Jazeera correspondents, have been expelled after interviewing protestors, and others have been prevented from visiting it. In November 2005, Moroccan authorities shut down a number of pro-independence or pro-Polisario Internet sites. This was condemned by Reporters Without Borders as an example of internet censorship.
The European parliament voted 98 in favor, 1 abstention and 0 votes against an October 2005 resolution that "deplored" expulsions of journalists covering the uprising and and demanded the "immediate release" of political prisoners(full text here).
See also
External links
Human rights reports
- Amnesty International New arrests and allegations of torture of Sahrawi human rights defenders
- Amnesty International Sahrawi Human Rights Defenders Under Attack
- Human Rights Watch Letter to King Mohamed VI
Pictures and video
- Video of Sahrawi student riots in Rabat From Spanish TV, viewable by RealPlayer - in Spanish
- Video of Sahrawi student riots in Rabat EuroNews, viewable by RealPlayer - in French
- Picture Gallery of the Intifada
Sahrawi blogs and support pages
- Sahara Libre Blog Mixed Spanish, French, English, etc
- ARSO Special Intifada page - Trilingual.
- Sahara Occidental Blog Mixed Spanish, French, English, etc
- Western Sahara Online Sahrawi support page on the Intifada - English
- Sahrawi Press Service (SPS) Polisario news service