APS : Wednesday, 18 November 2015
ALGIERS- Minister of Maghreb Affairs of African Union and Arab League Abdelkader Messahel reiterated Wednesday Algeria’s constant and unchanged position in favour of Saharawi people’s right to self-determination.
“Algeria’s position has not changed since Western Sahara issue was listed as UN non-autonomous territories, in 1963,” said Messahel, speaking to National Radio Channel 1 as a broadcast guest.
“Algeria remains faithful to its principles,” drawn from its struggle against colonization.
Algeria’s position is in favour of the conflict’s settlement as part of decolonization and Saharawi people’s right to self-determination, as stipulated in all resolutions and decisions voted by United Nations Security Council and General Assembly.
Messahel cited Resolution 1514 on granting independence to colonized countries and peoples, adopted as a result of Algerians’ historic demonstrations of 11 December 1960 against French colonization.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stress that fact in its latest statement on the necessity to relaunch direct negotiations between the two parties to the conflict, the Polisario Front and Morocco, to reach a solution in line with UN resolutions, the minister said.
In reply to a question about the worrying human rights situation in the Western Sahara territories occupied by Morocco, Messahel said the world is aware of the abuses committed in those territories.
Several reports have been published periodically by international organizations and UN specialized agencies on human rights violation in Western Sahara, he added.
