International socialist backs Annan's efforts to settle Sahara issue

The International Socialist association voiced backing to the efforts made by the U.N. secretary-general for the settlement of the Sahara issue.

The association said in a resolution passed during its recent council meeting in Geneva that its supports "a fair, peaceful and lasting solution to the conflict in Western Sahara."

The association "welcomes and encourages the efforts currently made by U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan to reach a peaceful solution in Western Sahara."

It also called on "all the concerned parties, especially Morocco and the Polisario front, to fully cooperate with the UNO for the holding of a free, fair and democratic referendum in the Sahara.

Annan will return shortly to North Africa to resume a tour in the region, cut short due to the recent U.N.-Iraq crisis.

The tour that already took him to Mauritania and Morocco will lead him to Tindouf (strong hold of the polisario in south-western Algeria), Algeria and Tunisia. The trip is destined to reactivate the process to settle the Sahara issue through the holding of a self-determination referendum.

The vote will determine whether the Sahara -a former Spanish colony retrieved by Morocco in 1975- sets up on its own, as claimed by the Algeria-backed Polisario, or be incorporated into Morocco.

Repeatedly postponed due to Polisario's stalling tactics, the referendum is now scheduled for December 1999.