Morocco's absence from pan-African organization handicaps African states

The Gabonese ambassador to Morocco said Morocco's absence from the Organization of African Unity (OAU) handicaps all African states.

"Morocco is a great country that contributed to the evolution of the African policy, and its absence from the OAU is a handicap for all African countries," Victor Afounouna told "Le Matin du Sahara et du Maghreb" daily.

Morocco, a founding father of the OAU, left the organization in 1984 to protest the illegal admission of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Sadr, self-proclaimed by the Polisario) during the Nairobi Summit.

The Polisario is an Algerian-backed guerilla movement that claims sovereign over the Moroccan southern provinces.

The Gabonese diplomat underlined that several countries, who had recognized the so-called SADR, subsequently reconsidered their position. That is why, he said, Morocco should resume its seat at the OAU. Several African countries later, including Burkina Faso, Benin, Congo, Burundi, Cape Verde, Chad, and Seychelles withdrew their recognition of the "SADR".

Afounouna underlined that Gabon's position regarding the Sahara "is known and will remain unchanged." "Gabon never recognized the SADR... For Gabon, The Sahara will always be Moroccan territory."

He recalled that an official Gabonese delegation participated in the Green March of 1975 that liberated the Sahara from Spanish occupation.

Some 350,000 Moroccan marched to the Sahara upon the call of King Hassan II to restore Morocco's sovereignty over the southern provinces.