Call to end ordeal of Moroccans sequestered in Tindouf
Morocco, Politics, 3/12/2001

Moroccan Princess Lalla Fatima Zohra, President of the National Union of Moroccan women (UNFM), called on humanitarian organizations to endeavor for ending the ordeal of Moroccans sequestered in the Tindouf camps, stronghold of the Polisario in south-western Algeria.

Speaking at a meeting held Saturday in Laayoune to mark the World Women Day, Princess Lalla Fatima Zohra urged the international organizations to press for the return of the sequestered population to their homeland, Morocco.

"If Moroccan women are living in an atmosphere of stability and security, a group of their sisters and daughters as well as other Moroccan citizens are living in dismal conditions and are submitted to all forms of privation in violation of international conventions," she said.

Relatedly, Moroccan women organizations called on United Nations Secretary-general, Kofi Annan, to set up an international fact-finding commission to investigate the situation of Moroccan women sequestered in Tindouf and to present a report to the UN Commission on Women's Rights.

The associations also called on the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to protect Moroccan citizens and children, held as hostages by the separatist Polisario front in south-western Algeria.

Addressing the meeting, Prime Minister, Abderrahmane Youssoufi, said the sequestration of Moroccan citizens in Tindouf is a blatant violation of human rights. He called on the international community and international organizations to work for ending this sequestration.

Youssoufi stressed that the Moroccan territorial integration cause is scoring important progress, as more than 20 countries withdrew recognition of the so-called Sahrawi republic, self-proclaimed by the Polisario.

Previous Stories:
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