Online petition unveiled to support release of Moroccan POWs in Algeria
Morocco-USA, Politics, 5/20/2005

An online petition for the release of Moroccan prisoners of war (POWS), some of them held for more than two decades by a separatist movement in Tindouf (Southwestern Algeria), was unveiled Tuesday in Washington during a press conference by U.S. Senator John McCain and six Moroccan POWs.

The online petition, http://www.FreeThemNow.org calls for the immediate release of the 408 POWs held captive by the Algeria-backed Polisario Front which has been seeking since 1976 to separate the Southern Moroccan provinces, known as the Sahara, from the rest of the North African country. A former Spanish colony, the Sahara was retrieved by Morocco in 1975 under the Madrid Accords signed with Spain and Mauritania.

The remaining POWs have been held in direct violation of the Geneva Conventions since the declaration of a cease- fire in 1991, and are today the longest-held prisoners of war anywhere in the world, notes the Moroccan American Center for Policy (MACP).

The visiting former POWs were released in 2003 and 2004, after being held for twenty years or longer.

"I know all too well that appeals to decency and justice can make a difference in the lives of prisoners," said McCain. "I have sent a letter to the leadership of the Polisario Front, calling for the immediate release of all prisoners of war, and I hope that my colleagues in the Senate and others will join this call as well."

Organizations such as Amnesty International, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations Security Council have all insisted on the POWs' liberation in compliance with international humanitarian law.

"Let us hope these captors can be swayed, not by political pressures or promises, but by what is undeniably just and humane in the eyes of the world community," said McCain. "We urge the Polisario to restore these individuals' freedom and allow them to return to Morocco to live the remainder of their lives in dignity with their families."

Captain Ali Najab, one of the six Moroccan POWs to appear with Sen. McCain, recounted some of the abuse he and others endured during captivity, and made a plea on behalf of those he was forced to leave behind.

The six former prisoners spoke about seeing their fellow prisoners murdered, tortured, forced to perform slave labor and forced to give their own blood to their enemies. The group explained that they had come to America to plea for the active support of the United States in helping to free the 408 Moroccan soldiers who are still facing torture, isolated confinement and regular humiliation.

Les Jackson, executive director of the American Ex-Prisoners of War Organization, also joined in urging the release of the Moroccan POWs.

"The POW cause is not about World War II, Vietnam, or the Sahara conflict -- it's about basic human rights," said Jackson. "That's why I'm joining many in the world community in calling on the leadership of the Polisario Front to conform to the compact among nations and free them now."

The Moroccan American Center for Policy (MACP) is a non-profit organization whose principle mission is to inform opinion makers, government officials and an interested public in the United States about political and social developments in Morocco and the role being played by the Kingdom of Morocco in broader strategic developments in North Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East.

Previous Stories:
  Moroccan prisoners of war held by 'Polisario' meet Washington Times Editorial Board   (5/18/2005)
  Arizona senator McCain urged 'Polisario' to release Moroccan prisoners   (5/18/2005)
  US-based NGO calls for including Polisario in Terrorist Exclusion List   (5/17/2005)

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