Accra, Sept. 23, GNA – The Sahrawi Movement for Peace, created in April 2020, as a political movement, is organizing its 1st international conference on September 22 and 23, 2022, in Las Palmas.
The Movement was formed as an alternative to the polisario front to promote the reunification of the Sahrawis and the quest for a peaceful solution to the conflict in the Sahara.
The International Conference for Peace and Security began in the presence of several guests and Spanish politicians, sheikhs and notables from the Southern Provinces and certain Mauritanian figures.
The Mayor of Las Palmas inaugurated the opening ceremony, Augusto Hidalgo, followed by a speech by the former speaker of parliament and former Minister of Defense of Spain, José Bono, who highlighted the courage of the first Secretary of the SMP and his determination to organize a meeting for the Sahrawi-Saharawi dialogue.
José Bono expressed his admiration for Morocco, stating that it is the one and only country in the Arab world to establish an open model on the promotion of human rights “under the leadership of a King who was able to put an end to the years of lead”.
On the other hand, he highlighted the historical relations between Morocco and Spain, citing words from His Majesty King Hassan II on dialogue and good neighborliness.
Dealing with the intransigence of the Polisario, José Bono hinted that in Politics, the winner is always the one who agrees to negotiate.
It also denounced the inhuman conditions from which the population living in the Tindouf camps is suffering, claiming that the only victim of this conflict are the Sahrawi people.
Subsequently, the Mauritanian Mohamed Ahmed Val, representative of the “Unity and Developments Network” in Mauritania, exposed the historical relations between the Mauritanian tribes and those present in the Moroccan Sahara, indicating that they form an unbreakable unit. The Mauritanian human rights expert promised to set itself up as a spokesperson for all Sahrawis who have suffered violations of their rights by the Polisario.
It was then the turn of the sheikhs and notables of the Southern Provinces to address the audience.
They affirmed that the Polisario, despite its pretensions, is not the legitimate representative of the Sahrawi population, while the traditional elected representatives of the tribes and the sheikhs have demonstrated their ability to unite the Sahrawi families on both sides of the border.
The sheikhs also underlined that this conference is an appeal to the Saharawi population to contribute to a peaceful solution to the conflict and recalled that the SMP is betting on the peaceful way and dialogue for the resolution of the conflict.
To this end, they launched an appeal to the international community to encourage it to consider the effective contribution of the SMP to the resolution of the conflict.
GNA