End impunity of authors of violations against Tindouf camps populations, Ngos urge

A group of associations for the defense of human rights in the Sahara called, on Friday, in Geneva for an end to the impunity of those responsible for the numerous and serious violations against the populations living in the Tindouf camps, southern Algeria.

The associations, which made this call on the fringes of the 56th session of the UN sub-committee on human rights, currently held in Geneva, warned the governmental delegations and Ngo representatives taking part in the session, of "the tragic situation of thousands of our fellow countrymen sequestered in the Tindouf camps."

A communique released by the associations raised questions concerning the blatant violations perpetrated daily in the camps by the Polisario separatists and the reasons why its perpetrators have not been arrested and brought to justice.

The Polisario separatists are an Algeria-backed guerrilla movement claiming the secession of the Moroccan Sahara. This territory, formerly occupied by Spain, was retrieved by Morocco in 1975.

The people living in the camps are used in an immoral way by their torturers to protract a problem artificially created, and are also used as a bait to get humanitarian aid that ends up in the pockets of Polisario leaders, the communiqué said.

The associations also called on freedom-loving people to act to end the painful tragedy of hundreds of Moroccan prisoners of war detained for more than a quarter of century by the Polisario, it added.

The associations pointed out that this situation adds to the suffering of the children in the camps, underscoring that it is crucial to allow the population to freely return to their homeland, Morocco.