U.N. mission identifies 80,476 would-be voters in Sahara referendum

The U.N. mission for the referendum in the Sahara (MINURSO) has identified since last December 3 some 80,476 would-be voters in the referendum that the U.N. plans to hold in the area.

In a release faxed to Map, the MINURSO said some 108,760 persons were convoked since last December 3. The Minurso added that some 628 persons were identified on the day of July 23 alone.

The new figure brings to 140,588 the total number of persons identified since the operation first began in 1994.

The identification operation resumed last December 3 after a suspension of almost two years, due to the refusal of the Polisario to participate in the identification of some tribal groups driven by the Spanish repression outside the Sahara.

The referendum is designed to determine whether the Sahara sets up on its own or incorporates with Morocco.

Initially set for next December 7, the referendum will most likely be postponed to the beginning of 1999, due to delays in the identification of would-be voters in the polling.

Last week, the UN Security Council approved a resolution extending the MINURSO mandate for an additional two months, expiring on September 21, 1998.

The extension was voted to allow the MINURSO to complete the identification of would-be voters in the self-determination referendum.

The MINURSO, which monitors a cease-fire observed since September 1991, includes 243 observers and other military personnel and 78 civilian police.