Morocco's renews adherence to referendum process

Moroccan Interior Minister Driss Basri renewed Morocco's "unequivocal" adherence to the referendum process in the Sahara.

Basri, who visited Laayoune where he met with the populations of the southern provinces and with representatives of the foreign media, announced practical measures taken by the Moroccan government for the holding of the self-determination referendum.

The vote is designed to determine whether the Sahara sets up on its own as claimed by the Polisario movement, or definitively incorporates into Morocco.

The Moroccan interior minister said he was upbeat toward the solution of the pending issues in the referendum process. He also voiced belief that the United Nations will be able to overcome the difficulties to reach a final solution to the conflict.

The number of eligible voters in the projected consultation is the major obstacle still hindering the referendum process, as the other party (the Polisario) tries to shrink the voters' lists.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a recent report that the identification process was completed with the registration of 147,000 applicants except for the members of three contested tribal groupings, H41, H61 and J51/52.

The U.N. secretary-general's personal envoy for the Sahara, James Baker, is planning to hold contacts with the parties to settle the issue of contested tribes.