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Article

16 Nov 2020

Author:
EU observer

Commentary: Time for EU to help free Saharawi people

The 14th of November marks the 45th anniversary of the so-called Madrid Accords between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania, which divided the Spanish colony of Western Sahara between its two African neighbours... Civil society groups are regularly harassed and cannot register. Human rights defenders and pro-independence activists are subject to beatings, arbitrary arrest and torture, while demonstrations are consistently broken up.

... Goods produced in the Saharawi Occupied Territories should stop entering the European market as certified by and produced in Morocco, against the Saharawi people's consent.

The EU must warn European companies such as Siemens or Enel of the heavy legal and moral risks of doing business with an illegal occupier.