Morocco confirms Algeria's covetousness in Sahara
Morocco-Algeria, Politics, 3/22/2002

Morocco's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Omar Hilale, on Thursday brushed aside Algeria's alleged disinterest in the Sahara and stressed that its covetousness was actually crystal clear in its latest proposal for the Sahara partitioning.

Commenting remarks by the Algerian ambassador at the 58th session of the human rights commission in which he renewed Algeria's disinterested backing to the Sahara people and adamant support to their self-determination right, the Moroccan diplomat wondered: "how can the Algerian president's proposal to divide the Sahara between Morocco and Algeria be described"? Regarding Algeria's expression that it was a forced occupation of a former colony through a secret agreement concluded on November 14, 1975 in Madrid, the Moroccan ambassador said the Madrid agreement was no secret and was actually the subject of a UN general assembly resolution. Furthermore, he went on, while the Algerian representative is putting forward the self-determination referendum, he does not mention that this very idea was proposed by the late King Hassan II during the Nairobi summit of the Organization of African Unity.

Regarding Algeria's allegations that the Polisario has undertaken some confidence-building measures and good will and humanitarian gestures, like the release of more than 100 prisoners of war, the Moroccan diplomat recalled that 1,362 Moroccans are still detained as prisoners of war on Algerian soil and that the International committee of the red cross has recently described them as the world's oldest prisoners of war. He also stressed that releasing pows can in no way be described as a confidence-building measure. It is rather a moral duty for Algeria, which is hosting the detention camps to implement the germane conventions.

History will remember that the world's oldest prisoners of war are held in Algeria, he warned.

The Moroccan diplomat further denied that Algeria is seeking peace and development in the Maghreb region as claimed by its representative, arguing that Algeria has been for 25 years adopting a logic of war it imposed on Morocco through armed gangs (the polisario secessionists).

Previous Stories:
  Morocco, Algeria convene to maintain contact over cooperation   (3/16/2002)
  Algerian Home Minister in Morocco   (3/15/2002)
  Morocco calls for face to face talks with Algeria over Sahara   (3/14/2002)

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