UN hears testimonies denouncing human-rights abuse in Tindouf

The United Nations special political issues and decolonization commission (4th Commission)

Carried on debates on the Sahara issue and heard testimonies denouncing ''Polisario'' human rights abuses and misuse of humanitarian aid destined to Tindouf populations.

The 4th Commission heard the two Shioukh Ghaouta Mohamed Ahmed Baba and Bahia Mohamed Salem who supervised the identification operation on the ''Polisario'' side and defected recently to return to Morocco, and a foreign observer Richard Cazenave.

The Shioukh told the commission how the "Polisario" used all kind of tricks turning down a maximum of eligible candidates to registration to flood MINURSO with appeals and cripple the identification process and stall the UN settlement plan as a whole. They explained how they received orders to systematically turn down candidates produced by Morocco except those on the Spanish census and to favor jobless youth, inhabitants of southern Algeria and northern Mali and needy Mauritanian nationals.

Both men reported on routine daily abuses of human rights of people detained in Tindouf camps and invited experts and observers to visit the camps and find out about the violations. They also denounced the hijacking of humanitarian aid which only profits "Polisario" leadership with active support of Algerian authorities.

M. Cazenave of the French Parliament's study-group on human rights said he was shocked by reports on human abuse in the camps saying the UN could not remain indifferent to the ordeal of families bereft of their children.

The Frenchman quoted several examples saying they backed reports by "Polisario" defectors whose bodies bear the scars of ruthless treatment and who handed him a list of all those who died under torture in the camps. He urged the international community to open investigations and help stop daily abuse of basic rights of people detained.